Food, Inc.

Food, Inc. starts off strong with a curious intro that raises some questions some of us may not have asked themselves before, questions relevant even if we are not customers in America. The rest of the movie also focuses on the particular American food-production ecosystem but is applicable just about anywhere else I believe. Special props to the few intimates who stand up, and have the courage to voice their concerns, even in the face of financial destruction. Food, Inc. is a wake-up call that ideally also wants viewers to react, because it gives a strong message that the companies are not the only ones culpable. The real problem of the documentary is how to move the customer from awareness to action, and in my opinion it did a very good job at this. The documentary switches between revealing and criticizing the corrupted system, and some inspirational stories of people who stood up and acted. In the end, I was certainly convinced of the impact of our daily decisions. It's good to see the makers correctly identified the root of the problem and take pains to influence it, instead of just focusing on the sensation that revealing malpractice brings. "So every scope by the immoderate use / Turns to restraint. Our natures do pursue, / Like rats that ravin down their proper bane, / A thirsty evil; and when we drink we die."

"Food, Inc." certainly manages in its most important goal - to get people thinking. I for one, have definitely been deeply impacted by the film's message and it is quite nice to have a straight-out message presented in a documentary. We're in an age where everyone presents things in this medium, but either tries to manipulate its audience or dumb things down for them. "Food, Inc." has struck a perfect balance between having a point and argument to itself, but also presenting the facts, ideas, and concepts behind it in a way that people can understand but that are not stripped down to their basics so they lose on weight (no pun intended here). Definitely highly recommended viewing - will most surely change the way you look at your food, just as the trailer promised.

Food, Inc. is really an eye-opening documentary about the food industry. It "lifts the veil", as the film phrases it, into the world of corruption, hiding, and clever trickery in packaging and advertising that these companies are involved in. We get a closer look at what were eating, where it's coming from, and how it's made, and the results are all too shocking. This is exploitation filmmaking, except for all the right reasons. Maybe the food industry needed this; maybe it was about time someone stepped up to the plate. At times, this film can be more scary and nail-biting than the average horror flick, the difference being that this one uses the truth as its most powerful weapon.

Kenner's depiction of the dark, corrupted food industry emanates long before Spurlock's "Mc-bulge," detailing our food's source before it ever reaches our cabinets. What viewers discover, transcends the urge to eat, to such a degree that veganism doesn't seem half bad. The film speaks to the various emotive cognitions the American feels towards their diet, and the visceral tendencies they have when feeling hungry. The result makes for a ponderous dose of speculation, and immanently-driven, self-willed investigations on unveiling the curtain that continues to obstruct and skew the origin of our food. A slice of steak never sounded so bad!

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]