Super Size Me
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Movie Reviews of Super Size Me
Movie Review: Will Scare the Truth Into You
Summary: 5 Stars
In a time when all we hear about is how skewed the latest Michael Moore documentary is, here comes a fresh and actually informative documentary about the dangers of eating fast food that not only informs, but entertains using the narrator's dry wit, self-effacing humor, and the absurdity of material he's analyzing.
In response to the case of the two girls who have sued McDonald's for making them fat, Morgan Spurlock decides to put himself to a McDonald's diet, eating nothing but McDonald's food three meals a day, every day for a month, all while cataloging the entire diet in a documentary that not only follows the diet, but analyzes our culture's dependancy on quick satisfaction.
We see the torture he goes through. The declining health, the sluggish behavior, the repeated warnings from his health advisors. The situation brings to mind wathcing a someone go through a hunger strike: though their body is wasting away, they never stray from the course. It is frightening to watch, yet our curiosity will keep us watching and wondering if the fast food we just ate is doing the same thing to us.
After being incredibly disappointed in the biased soapbox antics of Michael Moore's "Bowling for Columbine", I wondered if there would ever be a documentary that would move me and stir me to the point where I would want to take action in anything. Morgan Spurlock's "Super Size Me" did not disappoint. I think where Morgan Spurlock succeeds where Michael Moore fails is that Spurlock, while taking a point on an issue, doesn't look away from other viewpoints and never uses his position as a filmmaker to bully his views on others.
On a personal note, this movie has frightened me away from ever eating fast food again and because of it, I have actually dropped five pounds and have been feeling healthier because of this detox. So I can personally vouche for the validity of Spurlock's facts.
Informative, entertaining, and important for this day and age to watch, Super Size Me makes our society question just how dependant are we on getting the quickest meal possible that we would jeopardize our own personal health?
Movie Review: Seriously entertaining, seriously informative
Summary: 5 Stars
This documentary has it all: chock-full of research and facts, it is presented in a light-hearted and engaging manner. I picked this up after hearing a lot of the press, and I expected to be following director/star Spurlock around as he ate McDonald's food three times per day for 30 days. I was pleasantly surprised to find that his journey and the resulting film offers much, much more than just a story about a man who eats a lot of junk food. Spurlock's journey is the glue that holds together a film that features many facts about diet and exercise, interviews with experts and industry insiders, a look at how fast food is marketed to children, a look at the school lunch industry, and much more.
We all know fast food is bad. Spurlock's three doctors who monitored him before, during, and after his little experiement knew it was bad. They just didn't know how bad. They didn't realize they'd be begging him to stop his silly experiment because it was ruining his health at a rate they never expected. This is eye opening for anyone who thinks fast food is "bad," because the truth is a lot deeper than just that.
Are people right to be suing the fast food industry for their health problems? Spurlock does not answer that question, but he gives you a lot of data for you to make up your mind. Prepare to have your eyes opened!
Now that this film has made it through the circuit and it out on DVD, time has passed, and we can see the impacts. McDonald's no longer offers their menu items in "super size" (this happened 2 months after the film came out, but McDonald's denies any connection). With the raised awareness, people started looking for alternatives to fries, and McDonald's now offers fruit and salads as combo meal alternatives. Let's hope that we've hit rock bottom and the changes continue to come, so that in 25 years this will be a picture of "the way we were."
The DVD extras are definite must-sees. There's a quick one about the garbage produced by the fast food industry, but the aboslute winner is "The Smoking Fry," which will make you really wonder what is inside those McDonald's fries.
Movie Review: Information is as information does
Summary: 5 Stars
There is a psychological axiom which far too few truly embrace: No one can make you feel (bad) but you. Starting with that foundation, it is far easier to appreciate this movie for the data within. Whether or not the director is trying to push some personal agenda, there is a good deal of excellent information to be gleaned. While the scene from the initial consumption of a super-sized meal may have been staged, I don't think it is outside the realm of possibility. I don't mind admitting that it's my favorite scene in the movie. I think it encapsulates the film quite effectively- be it gratuitous or not. I also think it is absolutely hilarious and presents an enlightening message to the viewers.
Many have questioned the director's motives. However, I believe that these arguments are completely irrelevant. If you're sufficiently enlightened to cast judgment then you should likewise be savvy enough to accept the information in the context under which it is provided. I think the director is rather forthright in his presentation of the subject. There's a lot to be had here. The subject is presented clearly enough that anyone with above a room-temperature IQ should be able to see through any claimed subterfuge.
A great many arguments have been proffered regarding the conditions under which this "experiment" was performed. However, I don't feel that the author has hid any material factors. If the author's goal was to address every possibility he'd never finish writing the script. I think he did a great job with the subject. I think the fact that he was in good health to start with was invaluable to the message. I mean, the guy put his health on the line and all we can do is find fault?
The bottom line is that there is a great deal to be taken from this movie. I believe the information is presented in a very entertaining and engaging way, and I certainly thank (rather than curse) him for that. I'd much rather learn from an entertaining and/or impassioned teacher than from an automaton.
Movie Review: Everyone should see this fun little documentary!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a documentary of Morgan Spurlock's interesting experiment: he eats at McDonalds--and only McDonalds--for 30 days straight. In the process, he gains 24 pounds and nearly turns his liver into Jello.
Of course the "experiment" is rigged to end in disaster. Spurlock tries to eat at least 2 or 3 meals a day a McDonalds, he tries to eat everything he is served, he has to "super-size" his meal if the McDonald's clerk asks him if he wants to, and he has to limit his daily physical exercise to the average amount a U.S. adult gets. Of course this is going to result in a health catastrophe. (Still, it is very interesting that his diet plays the sort of havoc with his liver that the doctor would have expected if he had done what Nicholas Cage did in "Leaving Las Vegas", i.e., try to drink himself to death.) And it is true that a Big Mac has only 560 calories, and the average man could eat 3 or 4 a day without gaining weight, if that is all he ate. (And spurlock shows a man who eats that many, and is not fat--although maybe this was in the extra features portion of the DVD.)
But this is still an excellent and very intertaining film--far better than Michael Moore's "Fehrenheit 911." You have to have a certain amount of respect for Spurlock, or for anyone who is willing to sacrifice themselves for their art, even if you would not imitate that person. Spurlock is making a point--this food is not good for you--and he is entitled to make his argument in an exaggerated way.
Do not miss the special feature "the smoking fry." Spurlock brought home some fast food, including several different McDonald's sandwiches and two different types of fries, a McDonald's fry and another restaurant's fries. He leaves the stuff under individual glass cake dishes. After a few weeks, everything is covered with mold and looks revolting--except the McDonalds fries, which look like they were made the previous day. This stuff is not "food" in any traditional sesne of the word.
Movie Review: Fries no more!
Summary: 5 Stars
I watched this dvd thinking that it would just be a comical look at fast food, but I found myself much more effected by the movie. My young children did not watch it all and some of the language made me not want them to watch it, however, they saw enough to make McDonalds less appetizing even to them. Now, my 5 year old asks about any food served him "Is this good for me?" It also helped that Cookie Monster changed his tune at the same time.
Another recent reviewer claimed that a contrary and positive result from a Mcdiet could be found on the internet. I looked at that site and I would suggest that the viewer consider the facts a bit more carefully than did the earlier reviewer. First of all, the internet site with the contrary message is devoted to free market doctrine (i.e., "Don't criticize big business!"). Secondly, one Mcdieter is described as a fitness nut and continued his heavy exercising during his experiment, the other bought food at McDonalds with fewer calories than prior to her diet.
The article in question states as the bottom line that weight gain is the result of several factors and not just the food and that one should consider the nutritional value of their food. This obvious conclusion does not contradict the movie in question. The filmmaker makes a point that most people are not exercising and children's physical activities are undermined both at home and at school. The article's author also does not take into account the film's point that finding nutritional information at the fast food restaurants is often impossible, and always impossible at many school cafeterias. My kids' school served nachos one day this week as the main course.
In sum, this dvd is without the cleaner story telling and professional look of a Michael Moore expose, but it is hard hitting and hopefully it will make an impact with its viewers. It already has with my kids. Now they just want the McDonald toys, not the food.