Firstly, each of their lives is clearly a young person's life, devoid of responsibility and the pressing constraints of normal societal mores, values & boundaries. What they'll one future day put on their CV's, when they eventually stop being young and need more sustenance than dumpsters provide, is anyone's guess! Nonetheless, their chosen life is in fact only possible when young - not having to worry about health, back pains and retirement plans, all easy when young. But as a short term choice, their North-western European Eco-collective, as wackily irresponsible as it may first seem, still somehow makes absolute sense - or, at least, to those who live it. That much is clear from this reality/documentary. Just how they manage to bond together is fascinating to watch. They somehow find meaning in their lives in a way that most couldn't possibly understand nor even want to do so. No wonder the other reviewers to date hated this documentary. Many just won't get it.
Having said that, I couldn't help thinking, while watching this, that here we have the modern day renaissance of the once failed 'hippie dream', fueled by utopian ideals of saving the trees, worshipping mother nature etc. Yet, when either old age, or the mounting demands of being human among humans, set in, then the dream ends: alas, almost always by middle age.
But for the time being, why attack them? They mean no harm to others. They may be unconventional to the rest of us, but their ideals and efforts to achieve 'change' are, no matter how largely (if not ultimately) futile, are, at least, admirable in part. Nature does need people who value it more than they value conventional living. We are indeed taking more from the planet than we are giving back. And there really is too much waste and pollution of precious resources. Could you honestly take exception to anyone who works (however futile such may be) to try and effect at least some ecological change? What's more, much as it could be easy simply to dismiss them as a bunch of idiots, they evidently aren't. What unifies them more than anything else, is a fanatical desire for ecological change & social cohesion. Again, if you think about it, despite their going about same in a 'different way', there is still arguably much wayward method to their apparent madness.
Watch this documentary with an open mind, and try to remember that they mean no harm to others. For if you can keep unbiased mind, you might even find this documentary - which provides glimpses into the protagonists' daringly alternative lives - to be, dare I suggest, interesting. As someone who is no longer young, I'll admit that I still found this to be a compelling documentary; not because I'd ever choose their lifestyle, but because they are still interesting to observe from afar, in all this film's unpolished, and at times charming, candour. Now... I finish my review without even mentioning that four letter 'f' word. Why? Because you might also find that there is a lot more to this reality/documentary than that.
