Branches out to make some extremely compelling arguments about America’s poor eating habits.
Super Size Me (2004)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:164
Fresh:152
Rotten:12
Average Rating:7.7/10
Consensus: Entertaining doc about the adverse effects of eating fast food.
Theatrical Release:May 7, 2004 Limited
Box Office: $11,014,972
Synopsis: Why are Americans so fat? Find out in Super Size Me, a tongue in-cheek - and burger in hand -- look at the legal, financial and physical costs of America's hunger for fast food. Ominously, 37%... Why are Americans so fat? Find out in Super Size Me, a tongue in-cheek - and burger in hand -- look at the legal, financial and physical costs of America's hunger for fast food. Ominously, 37% of American children and adolescents are carrying too much fat and 2 out of every three adults are overweight or obese. Is it our fault for lacking self-control, or are the fast-food corporations to blame? Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock hit the road and interviewed experts in 20 U.S. cities, including Houston, the "Fattest City" in America. From Surgeon Generals to gym teachers, cooks to kids, lawmakers to legislators, these authorities shared their research, opinions and "gut feelings" on our ever-expanding girth. During the journey, Spurlock also put his own body on the line, living on nothing but McDonald's for an entire month with three simple rules: 1) No options: he could only eat what was available over the counter (water included!) 2) No supersizing unless offered 3) No excuses: he had to eat every item on the menu at least once It all adds up to a fat food bill, harrowing visits to the doctor, and compelling viewing for anyone who's ever wondered if man could live on fast food alone. The film explores the horror of school lunch programs, declining health and physical education classes, food addictions and the extreme measures people take to lose weight and regain their health. Super Size Me is a satirical jab in the stomach, overstuffed with fat and facts about the billion-dollar industry besieged by doctors, lawyers and nutritionists alike. "Would you like fries with that?" will never sound the same! [More]
Director: Morgan Spurlock
Director: Morgan Spurlock
Studio: Roadside Attractions/Samuel Goldwyn Films
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Reviews for Super Size Me
[an] irreverent and revealing contemporary creep show about our country’s forbidden love affair with unhealthy dining...worth chewing on as “reel” food for thought
While more entertaining as a gimmick than a film, Spurlock still reveals telling truth about our fast food nation.
Beyond any contention is Morgan Spurlock's gift for metabolizing common knowledge into uncommonly entertaining cinema.
Spurlock comes across as a kinder, gentler, less egomaniacal and -- not irrelevant, in this context -- thinner Michael Moore.
Filled with big laughs...Yet even the guffaws don't diminish the periodic bouts of anger, depression and horror we experience as we watch a nation eating itself into oblivion.
Spurlock doesn't deliver [his] message sternly but with bracing humor, a sure command of the facts, a lack of pretention and a stunning act of illustrative self-destruction.
Spurlock is considerably more charismatic and more endearing than documentarian Michael Moore, to whom he's already been compared. And as narrator and subject, he has considerable screen presence.
[You'll] be captivated by the deeper issues that cling tenaciously to its main storyline.
This reviewer, for one, hasn't been back to the Golden Arches since seeing the film.
It's a highly effective [gimmick], one that speaks directly to those of us who can't resist a double-cheeseburger with an extra-large helping of fries once in a while.
Spurlock constructs the film brilliantly, maintaining a darkly hilarious tone while continually jolting us.
I’d have been happy to simply sit and watch Morgan eat for a few hours, but the guy has a point to make.
One measure of a great film is the impact it has on one’s daily life, and the film that has most adjusted my outlook in 2004 is Morgan Spurlock’s Super Size Me.
Latest News for Super Size Me
May 09, 2008:
RT Interview: Morgan Spurlock on the Personal, the Political and Osama bin Laden
The documentarian comes over all Kandahar as we talk his latest, Where in the World is Osama bin Laden?. More...
December 06, 2007:
Freakonomics Headed to a Theater near You
Perhaps you've heard of Freakonomics, the bestselling book by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner, and thought it sounded interesting, but never found out, on account of how... More...
December 20, 2005:
"Super Size" Guy to Take on "Science"
Morgan Spurlock, director of the hit documentary "Super Size Me," will soon turn his cameras towards a documentary adaptation of Chris Mooney's "The Republican... More...
September 09, 2005:
Spurlock Signs on to "Class Act"
Morgan Spurlock, who famously endured a month of eating nothing but burgers and fries and capturing his experience in the documentary "Super Size Me," is reuniting... More...
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