Blog 8 Documentaries

I have eaten at McDonald’s around 10 times within the last 4 years. When I watched the movie “Super Size Me” in school I was not repulsed by the sight of him throwing up from eating so much fast food. I also was not disgusted when he showed the insides of what was supposed to be a fish sandwich but looked more like a mud pie with cheese on it.  

This documentary opened my eyes to the true nature of what fast food can do o your body. It made me want to eat healthier but it didn’t turn me away from fast food.  Within the article “Reality Movies” written by Deidre Pike, it states a quote by Wolski., In which he say’s “In the great documentary tradition, the movie is really a jumping off point for audience members to discuss notions of diet, personal responsibility and ‘corporate responsibility’ (e.g. should a corporation be held liable for selling a product it admits isn’t good for us).”. This is exactly what the movie Super Size Me did for me. It made me start talking about diet and who is to blame for the obesity in America. The problem that I ran in to within my self debate of who to point the finger at, was here was no one person or company to blame. There are so many facets that are working together that are creating the weight problem in this country.

 

When looking at this photo you most likely don’t think past “its two overweight women sitting and talking”. When Spurlock was filming his documentary his self made rules according to “Reality Movies” were ” He’d shoot video of himself eating nothing but McDonald’s for a month as he traveled to 20 cities………. If a McDonald’s employee uttered the dark offer, “Do you want to supersize that?” Spurlock had to say yes”. During the duration of this film Spurlock gained 25 pounds, which is totally understandable when you’re eating nothing by fat and grease all day. Going back to the above photo of the over weight women, each of these women are most likely around 75+ pounds over weight. So think about it Spurlock gained 25 pounds in thirty days by eating nothing but McDonald’s ( which the average american does not do), imagine how long it took these women to put on all the extra weight they have accumulated. It takes years for people to become obese. The McDonald’s corporation is not all to blame, not even the super size me option is all to blame. McDonald’s eliminated the super size me option yet our country is still predicted to become more and more overweight. Within “Reality Movies” it states that in 2004 the obesity rate in america was 60% of all U.S. adults.

I believe that the movie “Super Size Me” did open the public’s eyes to an extent. I also believe that there are tons of people out there that genuinely don’t give a crap. Until their heart stops because it can’t beat hard enough to get past all the plaque build up in their arteries, they will believe that none of this is about them. It is the same invincibility effect that teenagers get when driving a car or binge drinking. They believe that all the horrible stories told are just that, stories. Until these individuals get a major reality check before it’s to late, this countries obesity rate will continue to grow.