Director: Sharron Bates
Rating: NR
Review Summary
In coffee-yielding regions, a new and dynamic product is blossoming that continues to reshape the sociocultural landscape of the Third World - a product christened Café Femenino. A coffee grown, harvested and produced exclusively by female farmers (hence the name), Café Femenino contributes a great deal to attempts to reverse the machismo-fueled, patriarchal attitudes of local coffee culture - by proving and justifying gender equality and dramatically cutting back on misogynistic violence. Sharron Bates's documentary Strong Coffee follows a group of coffee roasters on their journey to Northern Peru, and meets the women who - in spite of abject poverty - continue to make this product a reality. The documentarist also provides a firsthand look at how Café Femenino is harvested, processed, and marketed, and touches on the question of how Femenino is impacting women's roles in contemporary North American society. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
