As Steven Spielberg once said, "documentaries are the greatest way to educate an entire generation" (Azevedo, 2013). In Morgan Spurlock's documentary Super Size Me, audiences are informed and shown the dangers of consuming fast food everyday. Spurlock has a camera follow him for one month as he consumes McDonalds for each meal thus exposing one to the unhealthy affects of the lifestyle. Relying on images, interviews, and statistics the viewers are informed of how processed fast foods begin to affect people starting from a young age. This documentary style film shapes the perception of the spectator through the use of visual and narrative techniques.
Morgan Spurlock's film Super Size Me is representative of the idealized version of film known as documentary style due to its formal properties and structure. As the film begins the audience is shown a group of children singing about turkey, fried chicken, Pizza Hut, and McDonalds. The camera unsteadily pans out allowing one to instantly see that it is being filmed on a hand-held camera. Much like the first scene, the doctors appointments, trips to McDonalds, and interviews are all taped though a "hand-held camera [with] live synchronized sound" (Cornell, Lecture #12).
Before Spurlock begins his month long McDonalds only diet the viewers are presented with the reason behind the experiment. His "position in regards to the subject" of fast food takes into consideration world statistics on obesity (Cornell, Lecture #12). Various facts and figures are read off to viewers through voice over narration as they watch multiple shots of obese men, women, and children. The audience learns that 100 million people in the United States are either overweight or obese, every one out of four America...
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...use of visual and narrative techniques. Spurlock has a hand-held camera follow him around for one month as he goes on a strict "McDiet" in which he only eats and drinks items sold by McDonalds. As a documentary, Super Size Me, incorporates many different elements of the style including filming people in uncontrolled situations, removing biases, and provoking responses. The film manages to reach out to a wide range of viewers as it reports and informs them of the dangers of eating fast food regularly.
Works Cited
Azevedo, Luís. "20 Stephen Spielberg Quotes on Film." N.p., 2013. Web. 14 Dec. 2013. .
Cornell, Julian. "Lecture #12: Cinema Véritè: Documentary As A Style." PowerPoint presentation.
Super Size Me. Dir. Morgan Spurlock. Perf. Morgan Spurlock. Roadside Attractions, 2004.
Fast food, while a quick alternative to cooking, has always been known to be less healthy than traditional preparations, but the extent of its health benefits or detriments was not known until a lawsuit came out which inspired documentarian Morgan Spurlock to engage in a 30 day experiment. The resultant documentary specifically targeted McDonald’s, the largest fast food chain in the world, which also happens to be a major recipient of lawsuits linking obesity and their food. Spurlock endeavored to spend a thirty day period eating nothing but food that came from the golden arches, with the rules that he would supersize only when asked, and every time he was asked, and that he would have everything from the menu at least once. In the 2004 film Super Size Me, Morgan Spurlock explores the concept that McDonald’s contributes to the nation’s obesity problem through the utilization of statistics and scientific evidence as a logical appeal, comedy and repulsive qualities as an emotional appeal, and s...
Even though on his own he may have been able to get his point across of how fast food can destroy a body, he still consults with all types of doctors and specialists. Spurlock even goes out to schools and the streets to interview random people to help his belief in the subject matter. McDonald's is one of the multiple fast food restaurants that serve greasy and oversized meals that are harmful to the human body. Throughout a thirty day McDonald's only diet, Spurlock surrounds himself with logos, ethos, and pathos to impact the viewer's opinion on the true cost of eating fast food regularly.
...lly has a critic. To strengthen the arguments and persuade viewers to their side of the debate, film makers tend to present only one side of the story. Specific placement of an object, the choice of words and the selection of scenes are possible elements that could be woven into documentaries to shape viewers’ perspectives on certain issues. Fat Head is a great case in point, which is likely to convert some public opinion about the ideology of healthy eating. Documentaries may contain biases that mislead the viewers; presenting ‘facts’ but perhaps not revealing the entire picture. Therefore, in a sense, documentaries can be truthful, but also fallacious. It is imperative to evaluate the techniques used in documentaries, in order to distinguish readily from what is fantasy. It could be concluded that Fat Head and Super Size Me are two version of the same reality.
Spurlock explains the corporations’ way of justifying their business and even defending against allegations that their products are causing consumers medical problems. For example, Spurlock explains that the McDonalds’ Corporation stated that fast food can actually be a part of a healthy diet. Also, Spurlock interviews a representative from a corporate lobbyist organization that defends the interest of several major food and beverage corporations. Despite what he has already proven, Spurlock then challenges the corporations’ opposition to his arguments by showing the audience information that contradicts the corporations’ claims. This further strengthens Spurlocks arguments by showing that some of the oppositions arguments are not entirely
Obesity in America can be considered to be at an all time high, and this is particularly evident in the documentary. One man was brave enough to take on the challenge to show America what they were actually putting into their bodies when eating fast food. By using ethos, logos, and pathos, “Supersize Me” became one of the most watched documentaries in the history of United States film and shocked people throughout the nation. Without the use of these rhetorical appeals, this documentary quite possibly would not have had the effect that it did on its audience. The documentary was very successful in getting its’ main thesis across. The audience left the documentary with a different view on the fast-food industry and the growing problem of obesity in the United States. Essentially, the director achieved his goal of influencing a nation.
Despite the differences in their respective journeys, the films of Spurlock and Fulkerson both combine several modes of documentary cinema including, the expository mode's use of narration, reflexive mode's use of the filmmakers on screen presence and the participatory mode in that they are both on a personal, and thus relatable, quest for knowledge. Both Super Size Me and Forks Over Knives use narration, which is prevalent in many documentaries. Both of the films know the audience in which they are making it for and are able to play to their respective audiences by engaging them with both off and onscreen narration. There are a number of facts and stats that are thrown out as a matter of evidence to support the thesis statements that Spurlock and Fulkerson are set out to present. On one hand, Spurlock is out to discover if eating a ton of McDonalds over the course of a month is a bad idea, and what would happen to you if you did.
While the film Super Size Me by Morgan Spurlock replicates the eating habits of what he believes are “average” americans, Fat Head by Tom Naughton on the other hand dives in deeper into the physiology behind the ingestion of food and replicates a more believable eating habit of an average American. Both films try to teach people about nutrition and change issues about either the government or companies such as McDonald’s, however one film proves to be more accurate and honest out of the both films. Fat Head not only disproves Morgan Spurlock’s film, but also shows how the government has been lying to all the American consumers the whole time by showing what professionals know about nutrition and showing facts to support his claims.
Super Size Me begins with Director and actor Morgan Spurlock being 32 years of age at the time of filming in 2003. Spurlock is recorded as being physically above average, which is attested to by several doctors as well as a nutritionist and a personal trainer. He asks these professional to track his health and wellness during the “McDiet”. Spurlock’s McDiet is a test where he will eat only food from McDonald’s for thirty days to see how it would affect his health. Throughout the filming of Super Size Me, Spurlock’s health g steadily degenerates until it eventually reaches a state of critical danger for himself, even before the experimental thirty days have concluded. While Spurlock is testing his McDiet, he also investigates further into particular
Obesity and opposition are the two main issues of this film. The issue of obesity, treated lightly in the beginning of the film and then severely by the end, reflects society’s approach to weight loss. To ...
Morgan Spurlock decided to make this documentary to investigate the fast food companies, and the effects of certain fast food chains products, particularly McDonalds, on the health of society. This Documentary explores the United States growing epidemic of obesity and diabetes as well. Morgan decides to eat nothing but McDonald's food for thirty days. He must eat one of everything on the menu at least once, and when asked to super size his meal he must do so. Another stipulation of Morgan's experiment is that he can only take 5,000 steps a day to replicate the exercise that most average Americans get on a daily basis. He must also eat three meals a day, no exceptions and if McDonalds doesn't serve it Morgan can't eat it.
Hungry for Change is a thought provoking documentary produced by James Colquhoun and Laurentine ten Bosch that delves into the implications of eating a modern diet. Using pathos, facts and figures, and association, Hungry for Change delivers a meritorious performance that engages viewers and leaves them questioning their own diet and lifestyle choices. The film’s use of rhetorical and advertising strategies and its ability to captivate viewers make this an effective, life changing documentary.
However, the image displayed in the Time Magazine's September 30th 2002 issue, is an image that is hard to decipher and, most importantly, is an image that is hardly a likeness to the icons imprinted in the minds of fast food lovers across the nation. The catchy illustration invades an article tentatively titled, "Can McDonald's Shape Up?" The cartoon portrays an obscenely rotund Ronald McDonald pacing stressfully on a treadmill. The editorial cartoon is not for everyone to understand, yet it still seems to be generally humorous in its own context. At first glance, the cartoon seemingly pokes fun at the growing obesity in America. This observation is perhaps due to the rewarding conveniences of fast food.
Director Morgan Spurlock was present all throughout the documentary Super Size Me (Morgan Spurlock, 2004.) Morgan Spurlock was the centerpiece to this puzzle of a documentary. Morgan Spurlock was included in almost every scene. The film focused on the body's reaction to consuming nothing but Mcdonald's for 30 days, and the director was involved in the whole experiment. There is no star bigger than the director in this mid 2000’s documentary, other recurring characters include his girlfriend (Alex Jamieson) and the doctors that helped him along the way. The way Morgan Spurlock conducts this documentary is very interesting, he was involved in mostly everything hands on. He interviewed people, asked doctors for questions,
Obesity has become an epidemic in today’s society. Today around 50% of America is now considered to be over weight. Fast-food consumption has been a major contributor to the debate of the twenty-first century. Chapter thirteen, titled “Is Fast-Food the New Tobacco,” in the They Say I Say book, consists of authors discussing the debate of fast-food’s link to obesity. Authors debate the government’s effects on the fast-food industry, along with whether or not the fast-food industry is to blame for the rise in obesity throughout America. While some people blame the fast food industry for the rise in obesity, others believe it is a matter of personal responsibility to watch what someone eats and make sure they get the proper exercise.
Directed and starring Morgan Spurlock, who is married to a vegan chef and a healthy man for his age, Super-Size Me is a film that follows Spurlock for 31 days as he follows certain rules set by a series of physicians. He was only allowed to eat meals off the McDonalds menu, including water. Also, he couldn’t exercise, but had to walk the same amount of steps as the average American. Filmed all over the United States, Super-Size Me was made to inform the public on the manufactured foods they consume daily. The film also raises awareness on the dangers of what manufactured foods do to the body.