‘Fast Food Nation’ brings light to underbelly of food franchises
New controversial documentary has kinks to work out
By Sean Santiago, contributing writer
Posted on November 9, 2006

There’s no denying the ill effects of an unhealthy diet. “Super Size Me,” Morgan Spurlock’s 2004 documentary chronicling his 30-day diet of every item on the McDonald’s menu, attests to this fact. This month’s “Fast Food Nation,” based on Eric Schlosser’s best-selling non-fiction book, again deals with the ghastly health repercussions of fast-food culture, yet takes the discussion one step further by focusing on the seedy underbelly of the big businesses that sustain it.

Fast-food franchises are microcosms of the American economic structure that sets precedent for the worst repercussions of capitalism. The truth of the matter is that french fries represent the oppression of the lower classes.

In “Fast Food Nation,” responsibility rests in the hands of the careless monopolies that (poorly) run the meat-packing plants and provide nationwide chains with the frozen patties they reheat on their oversized grills. These same corporations hire illegal immigrants to work the dangerous meat-packing plants so that they cannot be sued or expected to compensate for accidental maiming or deaths. These are the same corporations that breed hundreds of thousands of cows on mega-farms that quickly put small family ranches out of business. Corners are cut, profits are made, and in the end, the poor are exploited in some way or another.

“Fast Food Nation” auteur Richard Linklater and Schlosser took the advice of BBC’s Jeremy Thomas, and shot the film as a fictitious narrative with a focus on character development. Turning the book into a documentary, as would seem the natural progression, proved an unattainable goal due to Hollywood studio ties with fast-food companies (e.g. toy deals). Unfortunately, this undermines their effort to put a human face on the lives forsaken by impersonal business strategies.

Instead of an affecting drama in which the intertwined stories of the main character’s reflects the serious moral destitution big businesses endorse, audiences get one deeply sad, horrifying look at immigration intercut with a series of cheesy public service announcements that play out like a contrived after-school special about the dangers of fatty acids and irresponsible labor laws. The movie devolves into a chain of insipid dialogues decrying the consequences of the fast-food industry, and the actors might as well have faced the camera and read off the list of interesting facts their character was charged with informing us about.

It is a shame that these personal stories lack resonance because the film’s message is an important one. Not all is lost though, thanks to Catalina Sandino Moreno, best known for her role in “Maria Full of Grace,” who delivers the film’s most poignant performance as Mexican immigrant Sylvia. Turned off from factory work by the ghastly conditions, she takes up a lower-paying job as a hotel maid only to find herself desperate for cash as the pitfalls of hard labor take their toll on her family.  Wilmer Valderrama (“That ’70s Show”) shows some acting chops as her hard-working husband, but the presence of “Fez,” along with random cameos from Bruce Willis and Avril Lavigne (yes, Avril Lavigne), proves more distracting then anything else.

The rest of the plot is surprisingly inconsequential. Fictional fast food chain Mickey’s has introduced a new burger entitled the “Big One,” which serves as a launching pad for all of the characters to learn about, takes stances on and generally vilifies the fast0food industry. Greg Kinnear takes center stage for half the movie and then drops off the face of the earth after his character’s potential for revealing dark facts about business malpractice runs out. While the movie is decidedly spotty, Linklater and Schlosser are both deeply concerned about national health, the oppression of the poor and the repulsing greed of global conglomerates. But if you are really interested in America’s fast-food fetish, bite the “big one;” read the book.