All In This Tea

Hi everybody. Sorry to drop in like a rock from outer space. I just saw a documentary called "All In This Tea" on Sundance and feel strongly about it. I understand if you get Sundance you can probably find it on "In Demand" on your cable system.
I thought it was full of wonderful things but had to turn away whenever David Lee Hoffman was in view, behaving like the ultimate ugly American. He marches around China without a translator yelling at people. I think the guy should be taken to task for, yes, elitism, and for abusing people for whom courtesy is the first consideration in all human transactions.
If you'd like me to expand on this, just say so. I have the feeling many people here know about the film and about Hoffman, and perhaps would like to set me straight. Go for it.
Thanks.
Casey

I saw this film a few years ago when they were showing a "director's cut" and me and the people I was with felt sort of the same way. It didn't outrage me, but it did seem sort of strange and condescending in that it seemed to take the view that Hoffman was this crusader for everything that was right and that the Chinese and everyone else seemed almost to be obstacles to his righteous goals. No one making the film, including its subject, seemed to speak Chinese or make any effort to present any objective information on why the Chinese tea industry is the way it is. At least that is how I remember feeling after watching the film some years ago. I kept going back and forth as to why I felt a little put off by the film, but maybe you are right in that it seemed sort of like Hoffman was this ugly American marching around China being obnoxious.
Interested to hear others' thoughts as well.
cha bing

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Incidentally, I posted the above thoughts on this movie a bit closer to when I saw it, which was evidently a little over a year ago (rather than "some years ago").
cha bing

I thought he was acting like a merchant. Trying to get the best value for his money. Trading can be a bit blunt.

--
Lew Perin / perin@acm.org
http://www.panix.com/~perin/babelcarp.html

< He's really passionate about craft in tea growing and manufacturing, and sustainable agriculture as well. He's kind of famous for trying to get Chinese tea farmers to use earthworms instead of chemical fertilizers. >
All of these things add value, so he was indeed trying to get the best tea for his money!