Super Size Me

[aliveinHim]

It's scary, huh?

[TopazRaven]

If it's the movie I'm thinking of I still eat McDonald's.

[Cognitive Gear]

I think that Super Size Me is one of the most often misunderstood documentaries of the past decade. I'm not sure if it's the fault of Morgan Spurlock, or the fault of the audience, but I think that if you sit down and watch the opening sequence, the message he is trying to get out is quite clear. It's just that the rest of the film focuses so much on McDonalds and it's iconography that I think confuses/sticks with people.

It wasn't about McDonalds. It was about fast food, and the eating habits that our culture has been taking up as the time it has to sit down and eat a homecooked meal decreases.

So please, if it caused you to re-evaluate any of your eating habits, don't just stop eating McDonalds. Start eating healthier meals and exercising daily. Even in the documentary, they say that you can eat fast food and still be healthy, but that you should limit the amount that you intake. (I'd have to rewatch it to look for the exact quote)

[Hiryu]

I haven't watched the movie, but from what I've read, I think he could've gotten his point across a better way. It seems quite obvious that you're going to die/be very unhealthy if you eat that much and don't do anything to work it off! It's like "We're going to make a documentary on how the inside of a nuclear reactor affects the human body. OHGODITHURTSBAD. "

[Okami]

I had to watch it twice between eighth grade and tenth grade, if I recall correctly. Couldn't eat McD's for a while (Still prefer not to, since their food typically makes me sick) but as Cog mentioned, looking back it has helped to shape eating habits and the like, which was what the overarching point was anyways.

But any time I think of SuperSize Me, now I also think of Food, Inc. Both of those together have significantly shaped the way I think of matters in terms of "fast" food.

[Cognitive Gear]

I haven't watched the movie, but from what I've read, I think he could've gotten his point across a better way. It seems quite obvious that you're going to die/be very unhealthy if you eat that much and don't do anything to work it off! It's like "We're going to make a documentary on how the inside of a nuclear reactor affects the human body. OHGODITHURTSBAD. "

When you watch it, he explains that this experiment was based on two principles:

1) That if Fast Food is really part of a healthy, normal diet, that has no negative effects, you should be able to eat the meals they provide, in the portions they provide, and remain relatively healthy. (It should be noted that prior to Super Size Me, many people were unaware that fast food was any worse for you than

2) Perform this with the amount of exercise that the average American gets.

The overall effect is an examination of one aspect of American culture. We've been getting fatter and fatter as time has gone on, and the conclusion of Super Size Me is that we need to change our lifestyle habits if we wish to reverse that trend.

I've seen a few of the documentaries that were made in reply, and none of them were of the quality of Super Size Me. Many made it some sort of political rally, or some kind of superiority complex. What they all had in common, though, was that despite them being very angry about Morgan Spurlock's documentary, they all were showcasing the lessons that Spurlock was trying to get across.

[Neane]

It wasn't about McDonalds. It was about fast food, and the eating habits that our culture has been taking up as the time it has to sit down and eat a homecooked meal decreases.

I agree 100%.

[Nate]

Huh? Yeah pretty scary all right. *continues eating Big Mac* Man these things are good.

[alma]

Huh? Yeah pretty scary all right. *continues eating Big Mac* Man these things are good.

Yeah, they are good, Nate.

Has anybody seen Fat Head?
It disagrees with Super Size me. It is also in Hulu.com, I have watched both films.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/196879/fat-head

It made me laugh, think, and also a bit bored almost at the end, but overall I think it was a good information.

[Cognitive Gear]

:lol: Yeah, they are good, Nate.

Has anybody seen Fat Head?
It disagrees with Super Size me. It is also in Hulu.com, I have watched both films.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/196879/fat-head

It made me laugh, think, and also a bit bored almost at the end, but overall I think it was a good information.

And this is one of the documentaries I mentioned earlier. This one politicizes the issue of eating habits (why, I have no idea), and really is just an implementation of the things that Super Size Me dramatically affirms.

As a personal aside, his "meals" weren't really meals, just snacks, and the lengths he has to go to to make his diet work well are far beyond how people actually behave. Here's a link to his Food Log.

Which is exactly what made Spurlock's documentary so compelling to so many people: he was just eating the same "meals" anyone who walks into McDonalds actually eats.

But all that said, if viewing this, or any other documentary, gets people to eat healthier and exercise, then it's worth a view.

[alma]

Thanks Cognitive Gear for the link to his Food Log.

I knew that he was eating different food, as he said he would, than most people do when they visit a fast food because he wanted to show that there is another way.

The main point I got was that he made the film to show that people can eat fast food but they would have to change their eating and exercise habits if they are going to.
I like both film, but I have to admit that Super Size Me makes a better job in getting its point across.