Supersize Me Essay

The film, Super Size Me, focuses on high-marketing fast food as the cause for American health decline and the increase of obesity. Morgan Spurlock, renowned writer and director, challenges himself to a one-month fast food, high-fat diet; evaluating the dangers of fast food and the potential health risks in society (“About Morgan” 1). Throughout his journey, Spurlock concentrates on informing American audiences about the difficulty of such eating habits and the toll the diet has on his body. He chooses to eat a planned schedule of only McDonald’s food for every meal, ‘super sizing’ the order if asked, consuming all items offered on McDonald’s menus, ingesting only McDonald products, and walking the average amount of a typical U.S citizen (“Super

The specific choices in images, however, clearly express the argument themselves. In between topic changes, Spurlock uses images of Ronald McDonald and exaggerated cartoons to depict the negative approach of fast food dining. One illuminated transition displays an image of a gloomy Ronald McDonald in a 60s cartoon car, with a devious smirk drawn upon his face. The muted tones and stricken features within this image further invites the audience to think negatively of the McDonalds name, and more specifically, Ronald McDonald as an evil figure. Yet, Spurlock and his team do not only utilize still-images, but also cartoon animations. Within the film, a sequence explaining the marketing expenses for high-fat food companies, displays an over-exaggerated animation of obese businessmen, pulling billions of dollars out of their pockets and laughing at a thin businessman, with only a coin in his pocket, ironically representing a company for fruits and vegetables. This animation directly implies the fast-food domination in business markets and the incredible lengths of money we use to support them, a clear depiction that this cinematic technique provides the viewer with a negative outlook to the greedy fast-food companies we eat from

Spurlock personally interacted with four field experts: a cardiologist, a gastroenterologist, a general practitioner, and a nutritionist. After the initial month of dieting completed, several of Spurlock’s doctors expressed concern for the possibility of the continuation of such a diet. Many comments included, “If you continued the diet, you would most likely get some cardiac disease…” “Inflammation and hardening of the liver,” a direct implication of the effects McDonalds food had on Morgan Spurlock’s health and bodily performance (Super Size Me). This information disheartens the audience’s view towards the fast-food industry and disturbs the viewer based on the dramatic results of the experiment. Spurlock also includes the final statements of his four weekly-experts, answering the simple question, ‘Should people eat fast food?’ The responses advise, “No, the answer’s no…” “It certainly needs to be very restricted, balanced with an overall healthy diet and overall a lot of exercise…” a concise explanation for the complete assessment on Morgan Spurlock’s body (Super Size Me). Such suggestion persuades the audience to consider their eating choices and shy away from the fast-food industry, which could eventually lead towards a variety of health issues and