30 Days of Hell

Super Size Me (2004) directed by Morgan Spurlock is a documentary among epic proportions. Rarely does one come into contact with a film, specifically a documentary that carries as much weight as Spurlock’s 30-day hellish biopic as told on the silver screen. Though that screen at the end of those thirty days will be covered with preservatives, and grease; more than a plate after it has been tainted with a concoction of God knows what. It is still a film that needed to be made, one that must be watched, and one that needs to be taken seriously. So do you care to be super sized? That question is exactly what director Morgan Spurlock takes head on. He decided to go on a McDonald’s only diet, eating McDonalds three times a day, seven days a week for an entire thirty days. He will record his outing as well as his “progress” with the help of his girlfriend along with several medical facilitators along with way. The film opens with an eye opener of a sing along as kids recite a song in unison about Pizza Hut, KFC, and McDonalds. The kids enthusiastically sing aloud along with the synchronized movements. This is what kids are being taught in school? One thing Americans pride themselves on is that everything is bigger here, “our cars, houses, and even our waist lines” as Morgan states (Spurlock). This is evident in the rise of obesity, which is central to the opening of the documentary. Apparently it has gotten extremely excessive as more than 60% of Americans are obese. Also 1 in 4 Americans visit fast food restaurants daily. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun Times even jokes “of course I agree with McDonald's that a visit to Mickey D's can be part of a responsible nutritional approach. That's why I've dined there twice in the last 17 months” (Ebert). One question posed is when does “personally reasonability stop, and corporate responsibility begin”? Spurlock begins his journey by obtaining a team of doctors, and other medical personal to assess his health before, during, and after. The results, if any, should show what happens to your body after the 30-day calorie binge he will partake in. His first meal, an Egg Muffin value meal, can you say yummy? So what exactly makes these food corporations so successful? Don’t we have the choice to not eat there? The answers to these two questions are much more complex than one may realize. The documentary does a wonderful job explaining as a doctor from George Washing University states that companies such as McDonalds ”lure children from a very young age” (Spurlock). Think about it, McDonalds has the playground, happy meals, clowns, and even the colors. Yes even the colors red, and yellow are the two of the most distinct, and memorable colors in the color spectrum. As Morgan shows children in the first grade are more familiar with the image of Ronald McDonald then that of Jesus Christ, who none of the children knew. Jonh Banzahf of George Washington Law correlates the images that are pumped into children as such a young age as that of comfort. The idea of going to McDonalds as an adult is stimulated by the memories that were created during childhood. If McDonalds is go comforting then what is bad? By eating fast food ones risk of several dozen illnesses, and ailments increase tremendously, illnesses such as sleep apnea, hypertension, and coronary heart disease to name a few. Companies such as McDonalds won’t take the blame for the epidemic that is obesity in American, though the 1.4 billion dollars that is spent yearly would tell you otherwise. All that money spent yet only 1 in 4 McDonalds in New York even had a nutritional chart for the items they offered. It is disturbing facts such as this that make it obvious that McDonalds doesn’t care about the health or educating the customers, and only in fattening the pockets of the shareholders. So are fast food companies the only ones to blame? Not only are companies like McDonalds to blame but so are food