“I don’t go to McDonalds anymore. After I saw Super Size Me… no way!”
Scarlett Johansson
Run time: 1h 40mins
Director: Morgan Spurlock
Narrator: Morgan Spurlock
Language: English
IMDb rating: 7.2/10
One Sentence Summary
One man eats nothing but food served from McDonalds for 30 days in a bid to discover how fast food affects health.
Brief Synopsis
The rise of fast food has contributed to obesity becoming one of the leading causes of avoidable death in developed countries. By eating from McDonalds 3 times a day for 30 days straight, filmmaker Morgan Spurlock attempts to identify what the health implications of regular fast food consumption could be.
With the help of a Cardiologist, Gastroenterologist and a GP, Morgan has his weight, blood pressure and facets of his blood monitored and measured. During the experiment, he also reduces his levels of exercise to fall in line with the average American.
Interwoven into this narrative, Super Size Me touches on the tactics used by junk food producers to entice children, and the power of corporate advertising.
The Trailer
The Vegan Bit
Super Size Me is a ‘classic’ in a sense that for many, it would have been the first big food themed documentary they will have watched. The overriding theme is how the major constituents of fast food- fat, sugar, salt and caffeine, damage health and can lead to chronic disease and death.
However, there are implications for veganism. Fast foods generally have animal products in them, alongside the aforementioned constituents above (and sometimes a long wiry hair- which I don’t know if he super sized or it came that way). Thus, by not eating these products one reduces the risks of the associated negative health effects. It is possible to be vegan and eat unhealthy fast food however, as veganism and being healthy don’t necessarily correlate.
From another perspective, veganism is in many ways a threat to current establishments and thus they advertise hard (with children heavily targeted) and continue to lobby governments to get what they want.
From yet another vegan perspective, Morgan shares his experiences with his girlfriend. A vegan.
Where And How To Watch
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