Review - "Blue Vinyl"

I was very lucky yesterday to attend a free showing of "Blue Vinyl" at Sundance 608 in Madison, WI. Not only was it free, but the filmmaker, Judith Helfand, was there to talk about it.

The documentary starts with Judy learning that her parents intend to strip their family home of it's original wood and replace it with blue colored vinyl. She was shocked and tried to block the decision, but of course it wasn't her house. Despite the fact that her parents install the vinyl, she made it her quest to learn everything she could about Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) - from its creation to use to its destruction. This lesson lasts 5 years and takes her from her family home in Long Island, NY to a major PVC factory in Louisiana, to a manslaughter hearing for the executives of a PVC plant in Venice, Italy, to learning about siding alternatives in Marin County, California. She interviews widows, men who used to work in PVC plants, a scientist who determined that PVC production causes cancer, and a lawyer who created the largest PVC document library in the world.

I absolutely love this documentary. It makes an environmental subject extremely personal. Every time I hear that someone is thinking about vinyl siding, I ask that person to take 90 minutes of their time to watch this documentary. You can make a difference too by watching this film and recommending it to friends. I'm still proud of House on the Corner changing their minds about a new vinyl exterior after watching this film due to my recommendation. Wow, that sounds incredibly arrogant...