Big Boys Gone Bananas!*

The true story about a Swedish filmmaker, a banana corporation, dirty tricks, lawsuits, manipulation and the price of free speech.

The conflict between Dole Food Company and Swedish filmmaker Fredrik Gertten unfolds dramatically in the documentary "BIG BOYS GONE BANANAS!" as the corporation attempts to suppress Gertten's earlier film, "BANANAS!"—chronicling Nicaraguan workers' lawsuit against Dole. Initially selected for the 2009 Los Angeles Film Festival, "BANANAS!" was abruptly removed from competition, followed by a negative article in the Los Angeles Business Journal and legal threats from Dole's attorneys. Gertten captures this saga of corporate intimidation, media manipulation, and legal challenges in his documentary, showcasing the struggles documentary filmmakers face and highlighting the threat to freedom of speech posed by powerful corporations protecting their reputations.

$0

Budget

$0

Revenue

19-11-2011

Release Date

US

Country

6.8

Rating

23

Votes

-

Age Rating

90 min

Runtime

Released

Status

English, Swedish

Language

Popular actors
Media

View all media:

All Media
Медиа изображение
Медиа изображениеМедиа изображениеМедиа изображение
Director
Fredrik Gertten

Fredrik Gertten

Carl Fredrik (von) Gertten was a Swedish filmmaker and journalist. Gertten had a prolific career spanning journalism across continents—Africa, Latin America, Asia, and Europe—through the 1980s and 1990s. In 1995, he authored the travel book "Ung man söker världen" (Young Man Looking for the World) under the Gong Gong förlag publishing. His journalistic contributions extended to newspapers like Arbetet until its closure in 2000 and Kvällsposten from 2001 to 2003. Gertten ventured into television production, producing documentaries and entertainment shows for Swedish channels SVT, TV 4, and TV 3. Notably, in 2009, his production company faced a defamation lawsuit from Dole Food Company following the US screening of "Bananas!"—a documentary exploring a conflict between Dole and Nicaraguan banana plantation workers over alleged sterility cases linked to the pesticide DBCP. The court eventually ruled in favor of Gertten's production company, inspiring his 2011 documentary "Big Boys Gone Bananas!" highlighting the legal battle.
Related Movies

You might like it