‘Garlic is as Good as Ten Mothers’: Les Blank’s bizarre ode to the stinking rose
There’s an old proverb, “garlic is as good as ten mothers… for keeping the girls away”, that shows the culinary and cultural importance of the food and what some refer to as “the stinking rose”. After all, good old garlic is found in many of the greatest dishes in the world and is known and loved for its medicinal qualities to boot, as well as its ability to infuse the breath with a decent stink.
One might think that the saying goes back centuries, but the truth is that it actually stems in a modern sense from the American documentary filmmaker Les Blank, who was primarily known for films that explored American traditional music, including musicians of the blues, Creole, polka and Cajun variety, as well as Houston music icon Lightnin’ Hopkins.
Elsewhere, though, away from his usual musical motive, Blank dipped his toes into other subjects, say his two films about Werner Herzog, including one about the making of Fitzcarraldo, or, of course, his 1980 documentary Garlic is as Good as Ten Mothers, which naturally explored the history and modern importance of the plant and its tasty bulb.
Les Blank’s website describes Garlic is as Good as Ten Mothers as follows: “A zesty paean of praise to the greater glories of garlic. This lip-smacking foray into the history, consumption, cultivation and culinary/curative powers of the stinking rose features chef Alice Waters of Chez Panisse, and a flavorful musical soundtrack.”
As the film’s title suggests, garlic is so great that it contains the likes of healing and comfort that even ten loving mothers could not provide someone. In a series of interviews with chefs and culinary experts, as well as a string of cooking demonstrations, the nature of garlic is not only discussed in great detail but celebrated in the utmost earnestness.
Filmed at the Gilroy Garlic Festival in Gilroy, California, as well as a handful of other locations, Garlic is as Good as Ten Mothers sees the stinking rose makes it way into a number of dishes, including French aioli and Mexican salsa, showing how the plant has been taken on with open arms in a wide variety of cuisines.
In fact, Blank had suggested that whenever his film is shown shown, then several heads of garlic ought to be put into a toaster oven so that halfway through the entire cinema stinks of the stuff. However, he once admitted to The Washington Post, “I never insist on it. Sometimes theater owners worry that the garlic smell will stay in the theater forever.”
There’s always been honesty in Blank’s documentaries, and Garlic is as Good as Ten Mothers is no different in its intimate exploration and celebration of garlic. “He’s probably someone who has done some of the most beautiful filming of food that I can think of,” said chef Alice Waters of Blank. “But it took him three years of filming before it looked like there was going to be a film.”
Blank had naturally struggled to get financing for a documentary about garlic, considering its niche qualities. However, the end result was one of the best documentaries about food of all time, creating a wider appreciation of the stinking rose and explaining why it is found in so many different cuisines across the world. In essence, unless you’re a vampire, Garlic is as Good as Ten Mothers is essential culinary viewing.
