“Cows are amongst the gentlest of breathing creatures; none show more passionate tenderness to their young when deprived of them; and, in short, I am not ashamed to profess a deep love for these quiet creatures.”
Thomas De Quincey, Writer
Run time: 15mins
Director: Alex Lockwood
Language: English
IMDb rating: 7.9/10
In One Sentence What Is 73 Cows About?
A farmer struggles with having to send his herd of 73 cows to be slaughtered and decides to do something radical about it.
Brief Synopsis
This short documentary focuses on a typical British farm- a farm that raises animals for profit. There’s nothing unusual about the practice. Farms like this have been passed down the generations and the fate of the animals that live on them is accepted as the norm. Except one such farmer questions why and decides it isn’t so, or least, doesn’t have to be. He decides to take an alternative path, which he believes to be not only better for his animals, but will resolve his moral and emotional dilemma.
The Trailer
Why Is 73 Cows A Vegan Documentary?
Farmers often take a lot of flak from vegans and can be the targets of protests, vandalism and sometimes violence. To generalise the farming community as totally heartless and solely money orientated would be wrong. Of course, animal agriculture is ultimately about people making a living from the animals and their deaths, but this doesn’t mean every individual involved is devoid of emotion or a sense of wrong doing.
Veganism is growing and challenging many mainstream ideas that have been accepted as fact for centuries and longer. For some farmers, they are merely carrying on a tradition that has been in their families for generations- to question the morality of their livelihood, let alone completely abandon it, would take a huge reversal of thinking. But it is possible. 73 Cows documents this change in one such farmer who puts his livelihood, traditions and family history on the one side, and his strong sense of morality and feeling towards his animals on the other. The emotional turmoil he felt/feels is visible as he recollects sending animals he knew as individuals and not just numbers on an ear tag off to their deaths. The documentary is more about his well-being in many respects.
Farmers are in a position that makes it far harder for them to adopt a vegan, plant-based lifestyle as not only do they have to change their diet and way of thinking, but also go against a more ingrained tradition, seek alternative sources of income and face pressure and ridicule from others in the industry. But this farmer manages it. For the benefit of himself and his 73 cows.
Where And How To Watch 73 Cows
Watch on Vimeo here
Watch on Mailchimp.com here
The Official Website: lockwoodfilm.com
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