Super Size Me

Rating:
Summary: Entertainment At His Best!
Review: Before this I've only seen one documentary and that was "Bowling for Columbine." "Super Size Me" is a documentary very different from "Bowling for Columbine" but I gave both of them five stars. This documentary is more comedy then seriousness and humor, because it was made on one of the funniest news reports ever. Two overweight girls who claimed that McDonald made them fat, which is just silly because everybody knows how bad fast food is for you, and they had the choice of eating their food or not. "Super Size Me" is more funnier then some COMEDIES that came out this year, including "Envy" and "Garfield." When a light comedy is better than hardcore comedies, you know that you have a hit on your hands.

The movie was made by Morgan Spurlock, who after hearing about he lawsuits against McDonalds, decided to try something out. He went to see many health doctors, found out that he was in great condition for his age, and then went on a new diet. He could only eat McDonalds food. Three meals a day, and he has to try everything that is on the menu at least once. He could only eat McDonalds food, so that means he can't have vitamins or anything like that. He also has to get the larger "super size" if he is asked. That is a must. The diet will last for thirty days, and throughout he will get advice from different kinds of doctors, as well as us getting treated to interviews from these doctors. His vegan girlfriend Alex begins to worry about Morgan during his entire diet, and how he's changed. At the end of the "child's dream" you'll see the changes that Morgan encountered physically and mentally, and if any of it is permanent.

It is hard to write a plot for a documentary, because you don't want to give too much away. You don't want to describe what happens at the end, and what is proven, and you only want to describe, in this case, what the man is like, and what he intends to do. The movie showcased him eating the food in different states. He travels, and he shows what is different at all the different McDonalds around America. We also get a "taste" at the obsetity of America, and which states are the fattest. He provides enough background information for us to understand why he is doing what he is doing. "Super Size Me" is one of the most intriqing looks at the weight of America, and it could be an early contender for an Oscar next year. The next documentary that I hope to see is "Fahrenheit 9/11" which should be a very different idea.

ENJOY!

Not Rated, but should be close to PG-13 for brief strong language and some thematical elements.

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining and scary
Review: In "Super Size Me," Morgan Spurlock takes on the fast-food industry by combining Sixty Minutes-style reportage with reality television. The backbone of the film is Spurlock's experimentation on himself by eating nothing but fast food for a month. His progress from slim vegan to depressed, bloated meat-eater with elevated cholesterol and seriously impaired liver function is intercut with interviews, jokey animations and other flashy filmmaking devices that do nothing to contradict his underlying, serious point: many Americans are literally eating themselves to death.

That this film is worth noticing is proven by the number of critics, mostly on the right wing, who have lined up to take potshots against it. So Spurlock might have exaggerated, even cheated to make his point about how fast-food chains are contributing to America's obesity epidemic. Any fool can see that there's an agenda behind this film. The facts are incontrovertible, however: sixty percent of American adults are overweight. Obesity is now the second leading cause of preventable death. Major food manufacturers spend billions of dollars a year promoting their largely unhealthy products to the most vulnerable American consumer: children. This documentary should be mandatory viewing in all schools.

Rating:
Summary: Crowd Pleasing Documentary! I'm LOVING IT!
Review: Living on nothing but McDonalds for 30 days?
Spurlock says this is an extreme excercise - a bad idea. He purposefully limits his excercise to reflect the AVERAGE American (who gets little). The point of the experiment revolves around a court case where two girls sued McDonalds for making them fat. The case was thrown out saying they could not prove McDonalds was bad for you, or did anything to entice them. McDonalds claims its food is nutritious. He wanted to show the truth in an entertaining way. This is only about half of the movie!

Beyond the grand experiment lies a look into the culture of food in America. How McDonalds entices young children by marketing squarely at them, how Supersizing has lead to a lot of extra calories at little cost to the restaurant, and finally how all of this comes to play out in the schools where kids pick fries as a vegetable and candy bars to go with them. Why are we as a country fat? What are the ramifactions of obesity?

This film delves deeper than just the freakshow value of "guy gets fat and endangers liver with fast food diet!" If you are offended by this film check out the book FAST FOOD NATION which addresses all of this and looks at where the meat comes from! We need more documentaries like this! Entertaining and informative! I'm LOVING IT!

Rating:
Summary: Effective documentary on the obesity-fast food epidemic
Review: Morgan Spurlock's Super Size Me follows in the tradition of Michael Moore (in fact, there are, at times, uncanny echoes of Moore's style) as a muckraker who knows how to fuse serious ranting with nice dollops of humor to drive home his point(s).

In this film he targets the fast food industry--in particular, McDonald's--to show how the "McDiet" eaten on a regular basis can lead to horrifying health problems. He does this by committing himself to a 30-day nothing-but-McDonald's-food diet, three meals a day, and while prior to the onset of the diet his blood chemistry is clearly healthy, at the end of the 30-day "binge", things have taken an extremely alarming turn for the worse. The doctors who monitor him are shocked by the startling change and advise him to stop the diet immediately.

Along the way the viewer is treated to a sizeable number of interviews including, among others, of lawyers with clients suing the fast food industry, health officials, school officials, average Joes who eat the stuff regularly, and one obese man who undergoes extreme surgery--gastic bypass--to relieve him of his terrible symptoms.

At times the film dives into disturbingly unpleasant images. For example, the man undergoing gastric bypass surgery is interviewed prior to the surgery, and then the film actually shows details of the surgery itself, specifically focusing on the massive amount of fat that is extruded from the patient. In another scene, Mr. Spurlock is sitting in his car eating a McDonald's lunch and after 20 minutes of ingestion, he suddenly regurgitates what he ate--also shown in detail.

These are probably unnecessary, but the filmmaker is obviously making a point. Luckily there is abundant humor here as well, of the Moore-ian ironic type, interspersed with the serious material so well that the viewer is almost constantly entertained.

Much better than one might think, this is an excellent addition to the documentaries that pave the way for change. In fact, a mere six weeks after the film was initially screened, McDonald's discontinued its Super Size policy.

Definitely recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Did Someone Say, "Supersize???"
Review: This movie is an accurate depiction of what most Americans LOVE to eat & it shows in more ways than one. Morgan Spurlock gives a tremendous look at the McDonalds chain & how the US seems to gravitate towards the Fast Food chain in all areas. He travels all over the US to get customer's opinions as well as Grammar & High school students/cafeteria servers,etc. It's a wonderful presentation of how diet is reflected in what we eat on a daily basis & how it effects our bodies & minds.

He starts out being in great shape, having tests done (blood, cardiovascular--you name it, he had it done!). Three different dr.'s take his case, plus a nutritionist as well. All the results were better than normal. So he starts out on this binge of eating ONLY what's on the McDonald's menu for a month. If anyone suggests to Supersize, he has to say yes! AND he does!

Breakfast, lunch & dinner all from McDonald's. In a matter of over a week, his body has changed. The more he eats, the more he craves. It's the sugar that gives him the "high" & once that drops, he's useless. His girlfriend (whom doesn't eat any meat whatsoever), is against this, but stands by him. After roughly 2 weeks, he is depressed, followed by mood swings, heart palpitations occur, some chest pains, headaches, etc. Nothing good by any means.

Going back to have more tests done by the Dr.'s who are watching him closely, they all say the same thing: "You should stop, your liver has damage. This could cause more if you continue. You might in fact have done damage to your heart, which might cause problems in the future. If something happens to you, please call us immediately & there will be help ASAP". More and more bad news.

He just is dreading eating another meal, but for the duration of this month, he continues to eat this. It literally is a struggle for him in the end, but he doesn't quit no matter how horrific the test results are. He's determined.

There is a part where he consults his mother (via phone) & for a few minutes I was convinced he would stop. The next scene you ask? YES, he is eating another burger. Seems to go for the value meals best.

By the time the end of the movie arrives, he has gained almost 25 lbs., cholesterol has risen from roughly 165 (?) to 225 & the fat count is way above what it should be. Dangerous levels. The sugar intake is unbelievable. I won't give away the ending because it ruins it. Just an amazing documentary & well done. A lot of humorous parts, to which it displays how clueless Americans really are. Two girls think that suing the McDonald's co. for making them overweight is going to get money, well think again! They chose to eat it! Didn't see any arm twisting going on.

Please go see this true & factual movie. It's worth every penny you spend & then some! It changed how I look at fast food--don't eat much myself, but now that I've seen this movie, won't at all. It's a real eye opener. Encourages exercise & healthy diet.

This is on my "A" list of movies to buy. A treasure you'll want to share w/ others. I know a few people that should see this!