Les Blank has a rarity here that might have one of the best titles I've ever heard, or at least the most original. Garlic is as Good as Ten Mothers is a 50 minute excursion into the world of those who love, cherish, sing, cook, grow and pick and know a good deal about that most polarizing of seasonings and produce. As someone observes, making a dish that has a plentiful portion of garlic will bring out a reaction, and be it good or bad is what making something worthwhile is all about. In that sense garlic is its own cult, but one that already has a strong base of fans in Europe, slowly growing in America (this is 1980 of course, if these figures have changes in 28 years I can't say). What Les Blank gets on film is compelling and fun because he presents people who are passionate, and his camera probes in extreme, artistic close-ups into the preparations of unusual culinary feats, sometimes involving pigs and chickens, other times with dishes that look close to brains or vomit. Yum!
Like his Burden of Dreams, Blank has a knack at getting into the little things in a subject and making them paramount (where he found interesting insects and things in the making of Fitzcarraldo, here he has a fascinating at times with musical instruments that are played at garlic festivals). Granted, there is an occasional obnoxious voice-over which explains some of the history of garlic, including its origins and how widespread it is in America (2nd only to black pepper). But it's enlightening to see so much of this, like a cooking show that's given a slightly skewed perspective, loaded with folk songs dedicated to garlic, interviewees like Herzog himself, crumbs and specs and things that fall like they're meant as snowflakes through the compositions. It's oddball and and always loving, including a cool finishing touch of how garlic is farmed and packaged. If you love garlic, or just like some of Blank's films, it's worth checking out.
