Documentary Review: ‘Weed The People’

by | Oct 25, 2018 | Movie Reviews, Movies | 0 comments

Review by James Lindorf

In 1937, marijuana was made illegal for the first time, despite an outcry from the American Medical Association. When that act was deemed unconstitutional in the 1970s, it was replaced by the Controlled Substances Act, which created the drug ranking system we still use today. Now, nearly 50 years later, individual states are fighting back and pushing to make up for almost 80 years of lost research that could identify if, and how, Cannabinoids are capable of helping people suffering from a variety of cancers. Directed by Abby Epstein (The Business of Being Born), Weed the People follows families as they wade through uncharted waters and take their children’s survival into their own hands. The Ricki Lake produced documentary made its World Premiere at the SXSW Film Festival this year and will be hitting theaters on October 26th.

While the title is kind of catchy and makes sense, it is almost unfortunately cheesy. Epstein has a beautiful approach to this somber topic that does not fit its slightly goofy name. This is not the internet’s approach to medical marijuana, it is an evidence and research-based discussion. Due to the lack of research, it is unclear how exactly cannabinoids help cancer patients or why they help some so much more than others. The answer to those questions is what her subjects are fighting for. They aren’t asking for recreational drugs for all. They want the ability to find ways to improve, not only the length, but the quality of life for their patients.

The film follows five families using cannabis oils to treat cancer in kids that range from 17 years old to as young as 9 months. Some of the children used cannabis oil alongside treatments like chemotherapy, while others turned to the drug after conventional therapies had failed. It is a bit manipulative to focus on sick children, because who in the audience doesn’t want to help them ease their burden? Maybe it was just luck, or perhaps it was a bit of editing, but most of the film is shown through a rose-colored lens. Each of the kids has their condition significantly improve, thanks at least in part to their CBD oil treatments. Sadly, the effects are not the same for each child, and not every family has a happy ending.

Even with a bit of emotional manipulation, and possibly a favorable selection process for the subjects of the film, Weed the People is an excellent documentary. It is entertaining, educational and moving. It is well shot and edited, all while honestly sharing its information. They refuse to call cannabinoids a cure because they don’t know enough about how to treat people. Like the bootleggers of the past, people are making what they need in their homes or smuggling it from a legal location to an illegal one. The difference is, this isn’t to fuel a good time, it is to fight for the lives of their children.