The Real Dirt on Farmer John

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The Real Dirt on Farmer John ★★★ 2006

Eccentric John Peterson is the titular Illinois farmer whose life has been documented since the 1950s when his mother, Anna, began shooting Super 8 home movies. John, who embraced the counterculture of the 1960s, later took over filming—and the farm—after his father died. Director Siegel befriended and started filming John in the 1980s after a number of financial crises led him to sell most of the acreage, though the farm eventually rebounded as an organic coop. 83m/C USD: Taggart Siegel; W: John Peterson; C: Taggart Siegel; M: Mark Orton.

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