I showed this movie to a class I teach at a large Midwestern university; for a semester students study various ways to think about nature and the environment from philosophical, ethical and religious perspectives. The students loved this film: it was entertaining (laid back, humorous, engaging) yet also mind-opening (without being pedantic). They very much enjoyed learning from Devries, who (age 22 in the film) is more or less their peer. Devries models the famous Socratic method well known for its pursuit of answers to very basic questions which, when looked at closely, reveal complex truths and sometimes competing claims which demand sorting out. A question like 'why do we think in certain ways about animals?' leads Devries on a journey uncovering often-disturbing, sometimes-inspiring facts about the human relationship with animals on a basic level of survival. It goes to show that the question 'what's for dinner' is very complicated indeed. I would say that all of my students were entertained by the film, and most were challenged in a positive way (whether or not they agreed with Devries' own conclusions).
Review of Speciesism: The Movie
