BuzzFlash Reviews

January 12, 2006

Blue Vinyl: The World's First Toxic Comedy (DVD) (2002)
Director: Daniel B. Gold, Judith Helfand

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This is a little gem of a documentary that exposes the toxic, life-threatening practices of the vinyl industry. Yes, that's the vinyl industry!

What makes it so -- shall we say -- fun to watch is that the director and narrator, Judith Helfand, has a healthy sense of humor and irony, amidst this story of corporate indifference to the lives of employees and residents of towns where the vinyl production plants are.

It begins with her parents deciding to re-side their humble Long Island ranch house with blue siding. From there, Helfand begins an incredible journey researching the dangers of the process that creates vinyl products. Her jaunts even include a trip to Venice, Italy, where Italian vinyl manufacturers are on trial for the manslaughter of workers. (The owners of the company are actually on trial. If only it were so in the United States!)

Helfand is always accompanied by a slice of blue vinyl from her parent's house that she carries in her hand. And she keeps returning to try and persuade her parents to take the blue vinyl siding down and replace it with something that doesn't represent a toxic manufacturing product. Her parents are a hoot as they try to weigh whether or not to go along with their daughter who is making this documentary that they are proud of, or hang onto the blue siding to make their house look more attractive to potential buyers.

Meanwhile, Helfand keeps fanning out across the country -- and globe -- to provide more evidence about the dangers of the vinyl production process. She is so disarmingly candid and sweet that just about everyone appears at ease with her, with the exception of the spokesperson for the vinyl manufacturers' trade association.

This is a very cleverly researched, scripted and edited documentary. It is as endearing as it is frightening. Helfand lost her uterus because her mother was taking a drug that was supposed to prevent miscarriages but caused cancer instead. So, she knows a bit about corporate indifference to the health of consumers.

"Blue Vinyl" continues BuzzFlash's series of premium offerings on corporate corruption. Remember that Sam Alito would be ruling in favor of almost all -- if not all -- of these companies.

There are more than 80 minutes of bonus material on this DVD, including the directors' commentaries, epilogue, and short films.

Helfand and her co-director, Daniel Gold, have even started an activist site to encourage alternatives to vinyl. It can be found at: http://www.myhouseisyourhouse.org/

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