While examining the influence of the fast food industry, Morgan Spurlock personally explores the consequences on his health of a diet of solely McDonald's food for one month.While examining the influence of the fast food industry, Morgan Spurlock personally explores the consequences on his health of a diet of solely McDonald's food for one month.While examining the influence of the fast food industry, Morgan Spurlock personally explores the consequences on his health of a diet of solely McDonald's food for one month.
- Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 7 wins & 13 nominations total
- Self - Internal Medicine
- (as Daryl M. Isaacs MD, Dr. Daryl Isaacs)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
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What amuses me about the negative "reviews" for this film at IMDb is how the majority of the naysayers focus on exactly one thing: Spurlock's 30-day McDonalds binge. Heck, you could pick that much out of the trailer, and write a slanted review based solely on the imperfections of that particular plot device as an overall impact study and call it a day. I wouldn't be a bit surprised to find out that's what's happening, either. Certainly, anyone who's watched the political BS pour in to commentary for Michael Moore's documentaries knows how it's done.
However, if you actually take the time to watch the film, you'll see something quite different emerge: a pattern of childhood indoctrination, poor nutrition, inadequate exercise, and skyrocketing obesity rates, that's sweeping this nation like a plague. Spurlock's self-afflicted experiment is, as I've mentioned, a continuity device that unifies the broad range of the film within a single case study. In the total scope of what's addressed in this film, it's a relatively small part, and many decry it as unrealistic.
But Spurlock never claimed it was entirely realistic! He says as much in the film: he ate as much McDonalds in a month as *nutritionists* recommend one eat in 8 years or more. However, the problem is, a lot of Americans are eating as much fast food in a year as he ate in a month. What is the net effect going to be after five years? After 10? Spurlock further restricts himself to an AVERAGE amount of walking exercise, typical for our national population. The problems he exhibits after 3 weeks on this diet are NOT unique, they are the ones that people around the country are exhibiting in spades: weight gain, fatty liver, depression, inactivity.
It cannot be overemphasized that this condition is widespread. Those arguing "personal responsibility" have to answer the question of how it is that suddenly, over the last 30 years, so many people have "chosen" a life of sickness and self-destructive addiction over one of health and common sense. The effect of mass-media indoctrination is an obvious factor, and the film addresses it well. Spurlock also takes us behind the scenes at school lunchrooms and gymnasiums around the country, where we find out a little bit of what's been happening to the kids of America. Is the "french fry" truly the only vegetable we can afford to serve to school kids, aside from the dubious catsup? How children could be expected to show "personal responsibility" above and beyond that exhibited by their likely-obese parents in such an environment of brand franchising, 2nd-rate meal "programs", and cutbacks in PE/recess time is a matter that I invite all fast-food apologists at IMDb to explore.
For pure entertainment value, I have to deduct points for an uneven pace (especially near the end) and insufficient exposition from some of the people in the film. Still, "Supersize Me" stands as an indictment of the prepackaged food industry, its marketing hype, and its congressional lobbyists. It also serves as a warning to Americans trapped in demanding low-activity jobs which leave little time for lunch or exercise: don't eat the fries!
8/10
One of my favorite scenes was a peek into a school where the now-famous (and irritating) Jared Fogel (you know...fat guy becomes skinny guy !thanx! to Subway) does a "get fit" speech. Spurlock interviews a mom and her significantly overweight daughter, and the daughter actually laments that of course SHE cannot lose weight like Jared because...and this is priceless...SHE cannot afford to buy/eat two Subway sandwiches a day! So this girl walked away actually believing that the ONLY WAY TO LOSE WEIGHT would be to follow Jared's example, VERY SPECIFICALLY, and eat two Subway brand sandwiches each day. So for her, even the SOLUTION to her problem had a corporate logo! Amazingly, she could not even envision the general message of "eat right/exercise more."
Spurlock decided to eat at McDonald's and only McDonald's for a full month. That's three meals a day with no other food source. Before launching on what actually was a death-defying trip (literally since for variety he consumed Mickey D's food in Texas, L.A. and a lot of other places) he had a full baseline workup with a cardiologist, a gastroenterologist and an internist who gets more screen time than his medical colleagues-he gravitates between being supportive and alarmist, the latter increasingly the right response to Spurlock's bizarre quest.
Spurlock also has a nutritionist/dietician and a physical trainer to keep tabs on him. The only specialty missing, in retrospective one who might have been useful, was a psychiatrist. His girlfriend, a vegan chef no less, looks forward to the month with a mixture of humor and alarm.
"Supersize Me" has lots of scientific information on the nature of fast food and its impact on an America that eats out more than it dines at home, a change from a past where mom or a wife faithfully prepared most meals. Nutritionists decry the change in our culture, educators point out the impact of fast food in school cafeterias on kids' health, a former Surgeon General gravely decries the menace and the usual person-on-the-street suspects shock viewers by their bumbling inability to define such terms as "calories." A food industry spokesman is blithely unaware that he is being set up to look like an ass. And, of course, there are multiple shots of Spurlock vainly connecting with polite drones at McDonald's HQ seeking an interview which never comes. Does this all sound familiar?
Spurlock's month-long consumption of McDonald's products gets old fast although he and the director try to add some novelty like showing him vomiting after downing a supersized meal. Periodic visits to get his bloods and body checked reveal the insidious impact of a bizarre diet. His puzzled internist tells us several times he's never before seen a liver compromised by a high fat diet.
The problem, though, is that Spurlock is like those laboratory rats who develop arcane tumors after consuming the equivalent of something that no human could ingest in ten lifetimes. His peregrination from one Mc D's to another becomes boring as his health is clearly threatened and he stubbornly refuses medical advice to give it up.
The best part of "Supersize Me" is the well-presented information on schools and fast foods and how a few are resisting the commercial tide that aims junk at kids from kindergarten through high school. Even inmates, we're told, can be well fed at no greater cost than the fat-laden diets these essentially sedentary wards of the state have shoveled at them.
Technically, this is a well-filmed documentary with creative use of multiple images and graphs.
I hope Spurlock has more ideas for documentaries. He's had a lot of time to think about it-an epilogue informs us it took him almost a year to regain his former fitness and health thanks, partially, to his vegan lover's detoxification diet.
Oh, and McDonald's is phasing out supersized meals, a minor withdrawal in a serious public health war.
7/10.
I'm not sure I have a good handle on the difference between documentaries and performance art. It is blurred enough whenever Michael Moore or Ken Burns take control. Here, the situation is even more confusing. I think that is the intent and why this little thing has appeal.
The documentary half of this Frankenstein concerns the international epidemic of obesity that is overwhelming the industrialized world. The numbers and images are memorable enough to form the basis of an essay.
The complexity of this half evaporates when it is reduced to a matter of blame, as is always the case (the reduction to blame and the unworthiness of the result). Pictures of chunky kids notwithstanding, there are some interesting fundamental problems here revolving around whether we are capable as a society of making decisions; whether 'freedom' doesn't, even can't work.
But the other half of this is performance art. A professional actor binges on McFood and tells us (as effectively as Chris Guest might) about getting the McTingles and the McPukes. His doctors raise the alarm. Will he abandon the project, his mother begs. His girlfriend testifies that she can tell that McErections aren't as good.
All this is amusing enough to occupy your time, I suppose, if you don't have much of a life. The problem is that the latter half masquerades as the first. Unhappily, we cannot tell the difference, and the reason is the real scandal: political 'education' (and talk radio) has taught us that anecdote and metaphor are reasonable substitute for the real thing.
So one leaves the theater feeling that just like McDonalds brands its product with a clown, so has this film branded the case against McDonalds with a clown. Same same.
Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 3: Has some interesting elements.
In "Super Size Me", a documentary from talented debut filmmaker Morgan Spurlock that manages to be both entertaining and horrifying, he attempts to draw a parallel between the fast food culture we live in and the rampant (and ever-increasing) rate of obesity in America.
To do this, he launched into a little science experiment. A 33 year-old New Yorker in excellent health, he would eat nothing but McDonald's for an entire month, to gauge the effects on his body. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner at McDonald's and whenever they asked him to supersize, he would have to accept.
Before starting, he consulted three doctors, a cardiologist, a gastroenterologist, and a general practitioner, all of whom said this experiment obviously wouldn't be GOOD for him, but that the damages would be minimal.
Instead, the results were pretty shocking. Spurlock gained almost 30 pounds (over 10 in the first week), saw his cholesterol skyrocket, and experienced frequent nausea, chest pains, mood swings and loss of sex drive.
During this month he also drove around the country, interviewing several different people on the topic (including a "Big Mac enthusiast" who has eaten over 19,000 Big Macs). His research on our fast food culture definitely yields some interesting information, especially when he interviews a group of 1st-graders, and more of them can identify Ronald McDonald than Jesus or George Washington.
"Super Size Me" isn't perfect. It's a little repetitive and has a certain thinness to it (no pun intended!) that prevents it from being one of the truly great comedic documentaries of recent years like "American Movie" or "Bowling For Columbine".
But even if it falls short of greatness, it's an entertaining and thought-provoking film (especially if you're, uh...not thin).
Spurlock is a witty and engaging host (sort of like Michael Moore but not as much of a windbag), and I also liked his girlfriend (a vegan chef!) who looks on his experiment with a mixture of amusement, horror, and dismay. Just like we do.
Did you know
- TriviaThe documentary premiered at Sundance in January, 2004. Less than two months later, McDonald's announced that it would no longer sell any of its menu items in "Super Size", although it officially denied that this move was in reaction to this film.
- Quotes
[last lines]
Morgan Spurlock: [voiceover] Still, the impact of this lawsuit is being seen far and wide. School districts in New York, Texas, and San Francisco have banned sugary soft drinks in schools. And all-natural healthy options are popping up everywhere. McDonald's joined right in, sponsoring events that showed how health-conscious they've become, and creating a new line of premium salads. At the same time, however, they also masterminded one of their fattest sandwiches to date: the McGriddle. A pancake-wrapped creation that won my heart in Texas, but can pack as much fat as a Big Mac, and have more sugar than a pack of McDonaldland cookies. In fact, their new premium ranch chicken salad with dressing delivers more calories than a Big Mac and 51 grams of fat, 79% of your daily fat intake. Over the course of my McDiet, I consumed 30 pounds of sugar from their food. That's a pound a day. On top of that, I also took in 12 pounds of fat. Now, I know what you're saying. You're saying nobody's supposed to eat this food three times a day. No wonder all this stuff happened to you. But the scary part is: there are people who eat this food regularly. Some people even eat it every day. So, while my experiment may have been a little extreme, it's not that crazy. But here is a crazy idea: Why not do away with your Super Size options? Who needs 42 ounces of Coke? A half pound of fries? And why not give me a choice besides french fries or french fries? That would be a great start. But why should these companies want to change? Their loyalty isn't to you, it's to the stockholders. The bottom line: They're a business, no matter what they say. And by selling you unhealthy food, they make millions. And no company wants to stop doing that. If this ever-growing paradigm is going to shift, it's up to you. But if you decide to keep living this way, go ahead. Over time, you may find yourself getting as sick as I did. And you may wind up here
[emergency room]
Morgan Spurlock: or here
[cemetery]
Morgan Spurlock: I guess the big question is, who do you want to see go first? You? Or them?
- Crazy creditsThe last credit line reads: With VERY special thanks to my ex-wife's insurance provider for covering all medical costs. Thanks co-pay!
- Alternate versionsThere are at least two (slightly) different versions of this film, depending on the source. Comparing the streaming versions available on Peacock, Tubi, Freevee and Pluto, for example, the quote from Ray Kroc at the beginning is attributed on Peacock ("McDonald's Founder), but not on the other three services (just says "Ray Kroc").
- SoundtracksShimmy She Wobble
Performed by Otha Turner and the Afrossippi Allstars
Written by Otha Turner
Courtesy of Birdman Records
- How long is Super Size Me?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Super Size Me: Educationally Enhanced
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $65,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $11,536,423
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $516,641
- May 9, 2004
- Gross worldwide
- $20,645,757
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