The Corporation
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Movie Reviews of The Corporation
Movie Review: essential viewing
Summary: 5 Stars
After seeing this documentary film, which delved further into the unpublicised side of corporate power than I had ever seen before, I was left with a brain overload that stopped me sleeping properly for the night (I did watch it in the evening). This is no bad thing, infact its a very very good thing. -This dvd, that I hired from a corporation which actually is briefly mentioned in the film (infact the one thats hosting this review - oh thats beautiful irony!), had the power to change the way I felt that evening.
Thats the reassurance I gained, -the positive contast to such powerful expositions of the downsides that corporate america and modern society has nurtured- was that I was able to freely watch this seemingly uncensored peace of expose, distributed like any other dvd and was able to take from it what I could. Its like the ultimate contradiction and thats partly what sent limitless thoughts through my head - If it weren't for capitalism I probably wouldn't be watching this, instead anyone that attempted to question the regime or the superpowers could be kidnapped or even murdered (by secret police or similar) for daring to think such things, let alone actually be aloud to construct a peace of media communication that can be freely distributed and therefore watched by anyone who chooses to. I realise that if there wasn't a market for it, we wouldn't be seeing it, so thank heavens for the time we live in, there is light and this is part of it and so are we who choose to think about it.
I don't know what we're going to end up doing but at least this film reasserts that life remains interesting and theres pottential for people power to be used to great effect.
My only physical real world critisim is that the female narrator's voice (who features in small bits throughout) is not that compelling, making it a little soperiphic like shes narrating an old nature documentary. Thats probably a little harsh but that obviously did not really have an effect on the power of the film.
The Corporation' is not just left wing propaganda, it clearly gives all parties a chance to give their side to the story and thats what makes it all the more powerful and less biased than some other documentaries.
Everyone should see this, they should be showing to every 12+ year old on the planet.
Movie Review: A dire warning against the "Ownership Society" concept
Summary: 5 Stars
Imagine a world where it costs money to drink water from a fountain or even a stream, where 13-year-old girls work long hours in sweatshops for pitiful wages, where television networks silence journalists who discover health hazards in the nation's milk supply, and where there are trademarks on the basic building blocks of life itself. Sound completely far-fetched? Welcome to the world of THE CORPORATION.
This movie, based upon Joel Bakan's book, takes a critical look at the history, mindset, and activities of the modern-day corporation, which has become one of the most powerful institutions in human society today. Under US law, a corporation is legally a "person" under the provisions of the 14th Amendment, but the "personality" that a typical corporation exhibits can be demonstrated using DSM-IV criteria to be psychopathic. What this means for the rest of society is the focus of the documentary, which features interviews with corporate executives, labor advocates, whistleblowers, etc.
Some corporations do take a pretty heavy hit in this movie - Monsanto is a favorite target due to two of its more controversial products (Agent Orange and Posilac), and Halliburton subsidiary Bechtel is faulted for privatizing a Bolivian city's water supply to the extent that collecting rain water was regarded as stealing. But representatives from corporations such as Shell, Goodyear, and Interface get their chance to speak as well, expressing their own frustrations with the corporate structure and lessons learned from their own pollution of the environment.
Italian dictator Benito Mussolini once stated that his own brand of fascism was, in essence, corporatism. William Gibson's novels and short stories feature monstrous corporations of the future capable of shifting global economies with the stroke of a pen. After seeing THE CORPORATION, you'll gain a better understanding of where both Mussolini and Gibson were coming from, why privatization of all facets of society can actually cause more harm than good - and why, in the "ownership society," it is the people themselves who get owned.
And you may never look at supermarket milk the same way again.
Movie Review: Nothing but the highest praise for the highest quality journalism and film making
Summary: 5 Stars
Since discovering this documentary, I have - with the film makers' support - developed study materials that enhance learning and teaching on several university degree programmes. It is, without doubt, the most stimulating and riveting documentary you are likely to see about the nature and impact of contemporary business thinking.
The great strength of the documentary is the quality of the input from all sections of society, whether academic experts, corporate executives, social activists or members of the public. Arguments and debates are not fudged, they are all tackled head on. Regardless of whether the issue is market accountability, branding and advertising, the profit motive, environmental sustainability or workplace democracy, defenders and critics of The Corporation are given ample scope to discuss different points of view. You can hear directly from Milton Friedman, Naomi Klein, Robert Monks and Noam Chomsky. You can witness for yourself heated dialogue between workers and managers, or demonstrators and corporate executives.
This documentary is a prima facie example of the way high quality journalism can transform our ability to learn in a democratic society. Free speech - however unpleasant to the listener - is the life-blood of an informed electorate who can then use their knowledge to shape political action.
As a student resource (with the film-makers' consent) we produced 30 minute edited versions and learning materials aimed at stimulating debate amongst students. The reaction has been first rate, with many seeking out the full 150 minute documentary or demanding that it be made available for follow up study. It is not often I come across a piece of work that so stimulates students, and which would benefit from becoming part of a core curriculum - this documentary in certainly in a league of its own. Consequently, it is hard to think of a business school that could not benefit from introducing this documentary into its curriculum. It will inevitably stimulate much needed reflection on the nature, ethics and impact of corporations on society.
Rory Ridley-Duff (Dr)
Senior Lecturer
Sheffield Business School
Movie Review: Great for Students of Economics, Sociology, Political Science
Summary: 5 Stars
This is in my top ten best documentary films to show my students. Students of economics, sociology and political science will find the film particularly interesting and informative.
The filmmakers start by asking, "What is a corporation?" This question is answered in a systematic way. First, we find out that, through a gradual legal process taking place over the last forty years, corporations have attained the rights of individuals. The filmmakers then ask, "What kind of person is the corporation?"
Using the clinical psychologist's diagnostic tool, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM-IV-TR Fourth Edition (Text Revision), the filmmakers systematically check off the diagnostic criteria for a psychopathic personality.
The film's point? The corporation is a system, designed by humans, for a singular purpose--to generate income. This purpose is neither good nor bad. The political message is fair--viewers won't find zealotry, here. Rather, we are asked to take responsibility for some of the systemic problems presented by the modern corporation. In one of the films most poignant moments, we find out that, if a corporation can profit by damaging the environment, it is bound by legal obligation to stockholders to do so. This forces viewers to ask, if the corporation is a member of our community, shouldn't we demand that it be designed to operate in ways that do no harm?
With interviews from all over the intellectual and political map--from leftist rebels and oil-company CEOs, to sociologists and wall-street traders, this movie is a must see for anyone who is curious about how the "dominant institution" in our society affects all of us.
I absolutely loved this film. I own two copies of the DVD--one to keep in my library, and another to loan out to my friends and students. No documentary collection is complete without this DVD.
Movie Review: Gift From the North
Summary: 5 Stars
Documentary doesn't get better than this: an outstanding film. It's two hours of questions that every one of us in this society needs to ask of our government, our corporate institutions, our workplaces, and ourselves. Corporations and their media and advertising arms too easily sway us, too smoothly govern us. As the film points out, this is the result of billions of dollars of research, technology, and marketing. Make it your job to resist that attempt at an insidious psychological tyranny. The alternative is to mutely submit to living in a world where, as the film chillingly reports, a company like Bechtel can "own" the very rain that falls on a nation.
I was reminded in watching this film of something I've written about the measure of value in a society. Since many of us work for corporations, we can test the truths this film tells in our own way. Listen, for example, to how people speak when they're under the influence of the corporate machine. At my office, most of these folks are young, assertive, confident, and rapid in speech and manner. Many of them, to judge by their position, language, and demeanor, are most likely MBA's, or the equivalent. I have heard the word "value" a lot, in terms like "value proposition" and "value exchange." I wondered whether these folks had really thought about value--what it is, or that there may be more to value than goods, services, or profit derived therefrom.
But corporations cannot learn this, for in spite of what the law may say, they are not people (this is one of the principal themes of the film). But the real, individual people who work for the corporations and use their products and services, we can learn it and in turn teach it to the "corporate person". We can show them what a person truly is, and what it is that a person values.