A camera, an experiment, and a double serving of fries

Remember what Saipan was like prior to the arrival of McDonalds? It felt prehistoric. Every time my dad had to travel to Guam I would anxiously await his return, not so much because I missed him, but because he would bring home day-old Big Macs and fries. Sorry, Dad. Nothing personal. Those greasy, salty potato slices are tough competition.

When the golden arches finally planted their feet on Middle Road, I was giddy as a schoolboy. Wait a minute…I was a schoolboy. So I was giddy as myself? Whatever. I was giddy. At the time, you could get a double cheeseburger for $.99. Throw down four of those suckers, sans pickles, and you’ve got an inexpensive, full meal, satiating for even a “big-boned” individual like myself. Best of all, it was a balanced meal, with a sampling from all four food-groups. Bun = grains. Pseudo-beef patty = protein. Processed cheese food = dairy. Ketchup = fruit.

It was a total kick in the teeth, then, to learn that a McDiet isn’t actually good for you. With the documentary Super Size Me, Morgan Spurlock exposes the world to a little-known truth—fast-food is unhealthy. Thanks for the news flash. What shocking revelation will he unearth next—that the world is actually round?

Putting my McSarcasm aside for a moment, though, I have to admit that some of the information in Super Size Me was news to me. The majority of the movie is a venture through the obvious, but not all of it. What’s more, Spurlock is able to drive home one point in particular that I imagine will catch a lot of people off guard.

The movie opens by stating the perspective that most people probably share. When Spurlock asks about “personal responsibility,” he’s pointing the finger of blame squarely at the individual. If you are obese, clearly it is your own fault—nobody forced you to eat food of such poor quality. One of the interviewees even goes so far as to compare an obese person to a chain-smoker. Why, he asks, is it okay to berate a smoker for smoking, while fat people’s vices can’t be condemned? He’s obviously never been obese. Fat people are regularly ridiculed, shamed, and ostracized.

Without liberating the individual from the responsibility they bear, Spurlock is quick to point out, however, that the issue is not so simple. By revealing the literally addictive nature of junk food and the fact that it is so heavily marketed to children, Spurlock is able to show that the purveyors of America’s deadliest drug (sugar) are equally responsible for the epidemic of obesity. He doesn’t go so far, as I just have, to call sugar a drug, but he does make a compelling argument in support of such an assertion.

Super Size Me follows, very closely, Michael Moore’s style of filmmaking. In addition to numerous interviews with “experts” on the issues, from lawyers to nutritionists, we also get to see Spurlock embark on a dark, masochistic experiment. For one month, he will eat nothing but McDonald’s. If it’s not on the McDonald’s menu, he won’t touch it. In the span of that month, his health takes a serious decline, coming dangerously close to complete liver failure. The results of his experiment are not very surprising, but are fun to watch anyway.

Like Moore, Spurlock sprinkles his informative documentary with humor, which proves to make the film much more palatable. Documentarians like Moore and Spurlock have established that a documentary doesn’t have to be dry and boring. It’s okay to have fun while learning something new. My only criticism is that the movie is too long. Even with all the humor, there are still quite a few times when the movie drags on a little too much (I thought the same was true of Fahrenheit 9/11). Much of the movie could’ve been cut, bringing the running time down to about 60 minutes, while retaining the same amount of information. A shorter running time would probably make the arguments more effective, by keeping hold of the audience’s full attention.

Shortly after Super Size Me was awarded the director’s prize at the Sundance Film Festival, McDonald’s announced it would be discontinuing their Super Size menu, denying that there was any connection between their decision and Spurlock’s film. Maybe, maybe not. Last time I stopped by Ronald’s house of burgers, though, they seemed to be doing just fine.

Will Super Size Me have any long-lasting, far-reaching effects? Will the McEmpire crumble under the pressure of a health-conscious film? Will the McRib sandwich ever make a comeback? The answers to these questions, respectively, are “No”, “No”, and “I really hope so.” Lobby all the criticisms you want at McD’s. You’ll never change the fact that the recipe of “two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a sesame-seed bun” is as American as Doritos and Coca-Cola. I’d say apple pie, but that’s actually German.

The transformation of Saipan into a little tropical America will be complete when Ronald McDonald is accompanied by Jack in the Crack and the chihuahua from Taco Hell. No reason to deny the truth. You know you crave the Double-Decker Taco Supreme, and the Bacon Ultimate Cheeseburger. Cheese, meat, cheese, meat, cheese, and that’s it. And, yes, I want those curly-fries Supersized, with ranch dressing on the side. Super Size Me may or may not spur you to opt for a healthier diet, but regardless, it is entertaining and informative, and I definitely recommend viewing it.

Comments? E-mail Weindl at joewatchesmovies@yahoo.com. (Joe Weindl)