Location: Al Whittle Theatre, Wolfville, NS and Online
Date: Oct 21, 2021
Time: 5:30 pm – 6:50 pm

Price: $15 – Buy Now

Chiliheads is a fascinating look at the love for the hot pepper. Julien Fréchette created a very insightful documentary that features people from different walks of life who are obsessed with this fruit. From its roots of being a very regional plant to its pollination around the world (mostly because of trading from the Portuguese traders), it’s growing everywhere. Each variant has its own flavour profile and heat level. A lot of information is densely packed in this 73 min work, and it’s certainly worth watching again just to learn about why it’s become part of certain cultures’ cuisine.

This work travels the world and we get to see why this pepper is loved in Canada, USA, Mexico, Trinidad, Tobago and India. As we hear from chefs, scientists and consumers, it’s possible to get even new ideas on how to use those discarded parts of the hot pepper for cooking. Sometimes, all a dish needs is a few bits of the seed rather than skin, or vice versa. It all depends. But this work doesn’t end there. There are growers trying to outdo each other to breed the hottest nightshade possible. The ghost pepper once held the title, but in the timeline of when this documentary was filmed, edited and headed to screen, it’s Smokin’ Ed’s Carolina Reaper.

The question is raised. Why do humans love eating super hot stuff? Some minds are hard-wired to test their limits in nearly everything presented to themselves. Some do extreme sports and others want to stuff the darndest thing down their mouth. This film nicely finishes by doing a science experiment and looks into why the human brain is conditioned the way it is.

4 Stars out of 5