The DVD Dissection: Fast Food Nation
Posted by Chad Webb on 03.28.2007
The most disgustingly engaging happy meal in cinema.
Wilmer Valderrama: Raul
Catalina Sandino Moreno: Sylvia
Greg Kinnear: Don Anderson
Ashley Johnson: Amber
Ana Claudia Talancon: Coco
Frank Ertl: Jack
Luis Guzman: Benny
Bobby Cannavale: Mike
Paul Dano: Brian
Patricia Arquette: Cindy
Esai Morales: Tony
Kris Kristofferson: Rudy Martin
Bruce Willis: Harry Rydell
Ethan Hawke: Pete
Avril Lavigne: Alice
Lou Taylor Pucci: Paco
Written/Directed By: Richard Linklater
Theatrical Release Date: November 17, 2006
DVD release Date: March 6, 2007
Running Time: 114 minutes
Rated R for disturbing images, strong sexuality, language and drug content.
The Film
I have never eaten a fast food burger. Growing up, I was an extremely picky eater, so I stuck with chicken nuggets only. It was a habit that has remained with me into adulthood. What makes that more interesting is the fact that I worked at a fast food restaurant for a short time. I won’t specify which one. It might sound hard to believe but it’s true. What Fast Food Nation does is cement that my decision to not consume those burgers was a wise one. Having been employed at such a place many years ago, I can safely say that this film gets a lot of its images, themes, and realities correct.
Fast Food Nation is an ensemble piece that follows three storylines which delve into the deep dark secrets, risks, and effects of the fast food industry. Don Henderson (Greg Kinnear) is a marketing executive at Mickey’s, a fast food establishment, and he is responsible for “The Big One”, a hamburger that has become an enormous hit. His superior informs him that high amounts of fecal matter are being found in the meat. He travels to the Uni-Globe meat packing plant to investigate the problem. Raul (Wilmer Valderrama) and Sylvia (Catalina Sandino Moreno) are illegal Mexican immigrants who have successfully gotten across the border, and are sent to work at the plant. They discover that the money is good, but the job is a nightmare. Finally, Amber (Ashley Johnson) is a high school student and cashier at a local Mickey’s. She stays at the job because of her bills, but she suddenly thinks it might not be worth it when her Uncle changes her mind.
Unlike Morgan Spurlock’s documentary Super Size Me, Fast Food Nation has a message and layout that viewers can connect to, and is a bit more realistic in nature. Obviously that experiment was much more popular than this movie, but it shouldn’t be. Admittedly, it was fascinating, but ultimately proved nothing and showed us results that most people should have anticipated anyway. What would we expect to happen after someone eats nothing but fast food for a set period of time? Fast Food Nation takes the audience where they do not want go, and unveils truths that we pretend do not exist.
The performances as a unit are wonderful. Greg Kinnear is proving more with each additional role that he is a terrific actor. As Don Henderson, he is overwhelmed by what he uncovers about the meat his company utilizes. He is spot on and down to earth. That 70’s Show star Wilmer Valderrama is very restrained and satisfactory as Raul, an illegal immigrant working at the meat packing plant. Bobby Cannavale is fantastic as the womanizing supervisor at the plant. Growing Pains child actress Ashley Johnson is adequate, yet pleasing as Amber, a young girl deciding how she wants he her life pan out.
The great aspect of the acting is the brief one scene roles by several different stars. They are convincing and brilliant. Bruce Willis gives the best speech in the entire film with Greg Kinnear. It is so good that I would compare it to Tim Blake Nelson’s monologue in Syriana. Kris Kristofferson plays a rancher, who has seen and dealt with just about everything possible on his land. He slips into this role, and sets Kinnear’s character straight smoothly and naturally. Ethan Hawke pops in amusingly as Amber’s intelligent and rebellious Uncle. He is a fairly young Uncle, who acts as a role model for his niece. He inadvertently alters her direction in life. Avril Lavigne takes on a properly minor role as Alice, and Paul Dano (Little Miss Sunshine) is perfect as a frustrated grill worker at Mickey’s.
This is not completely flawless, but I feel many critics have misunderstood certain sequences. For instance, Paul Dano’s character discusses a recent robbery at a McDonald’s. He talks to a co-worker about robbing Mickey’s, the restaurant he is employed for. This was not meant to be taken literally. He is a person that is all talk, and no action. Those are the type of kids that work at these fast food restaurants. Trust me, I know. Look the next time you buy a value meal. The purpose was to pay attention to his grumbling and complaining in general, not his specific comments. One of the significant points made here is how our food is affected because of these disgruntled and mistreated employees. This same idea can be seen in the storyline involving the illegal immigrants that work at the meat packing plant.
A couple of discrepancies are aggravating, but small enough to be overlooked easily. Greg Kinnear’s side of the plot is dismissed abruptly. I suppose his story was finished, but it could have been paced and executed to make more sense for viewers. Also, an illegal immigrant named Coco goes from being addicted to crank, to recovering without much explanation, but again, it was not just about her drug issues, it was about how that addiction had an effect on her occupation.
Fast Food Nation is a grand hyperlink film mixed with a docu-drama atmosphere. It is trademark Richard Linklater (Dazed and Confused, School of Rock). The structure is very jumpy and splotchy, but that is how he operates. He is a master at conjuring witty dialogue and filming normal people talking casually to each other. He supplies that facet marvelously, but he also captures the poor conditions of the meat packing plant with blood, guts, knives, injuries, and sexual intercourse galore. Linklater has penned the screenplay from Eric Schlosser’s muckraking best seller. It has been transformed into a fictional tale of the deceitful and scheming fast food industry, but supported by fictional characters. Since this is dissimilar to ensemble offerings such as those Robert Altman might construct, Crash, or Babel, it is that much more mesmerizing. Instead of focusing totally on drama, Linklater injects a necessary dose of humor and lightheartedness to the substance in order to exhibit that he does not wish to change the world with one swoop.
The scope of Fast Food Nation is huge, and the plot threads are numerous, but they are all combined with sophistication and respect. This is not a political statement that is forced upon us, but simply put in front of us to ponder. This is the Syriana of the fast food business. Linklater designed it deliberately to make us think, nothing more, and nothing less. It is a humanistic and haunting portrait of how people view their unfortunate jobs. The exploration of the fast food culture, and our obsession is important to address, but not imperative. Those who state that this vehemently Pro-Vegan are wrong and over-exaggerating. Will this cause thousands to stop going to McDonald’s or Wendy’s? Of course not, but maybe we will think a bit harder the next time we are perusing the menu.
The Video
The transfer here is not spotless and shiny, but that was the goal. The color is saturated with a wholesome appearance. The camera work is shaky and loose, but hypnotizing all the same. The bright colors of Mickey’s stand out as vibrant, but the overall quality is not very significant here. It is good enough. Like Babel, this type of picture displays an unusual, but authentic feel. I noticed no blurriness and no noteworthy distractions or faults. This was presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1.
The Audio
The sound was perfectly reasonable throughout the entire film. I never had to adjust my volume control, and every character was very understandable and spoke clearly. The Spanish speaking segments exhibited subtitles which were paced well with a superbly visible yellow font. You won’t hear any big explosions or car crashes through the speakers, but the sizzle of the grill comes across fabulously. The score and music are also charming and top-notch. This has a Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0 track, and an English Dolby Digital 5.1 track. Subtitles in Spanish, English, and French are also provided.
The Packaging
Fast Food Nation is distributed in a standard black keep case with some very attractive artwork on the cover. The menus have a tune playing in the background, and the images from the movie illustrate the overall premise of the movie just fine.
The Extras
Feature Audio Commentary - This commentary track is with Writer/Director Richard Linklater and Author Eric Schlosser. This was an outstanding commentary with both individuals. They divulge so many intriguing pieces of information, and there is never a dull moment between the two of them. From production details, to themes, and scene specific facts, this was riveting from start to finish.
The Manufacturing of Fast Food Nation (55:24) – This was such a great and surprising treat on this disc. I was glad to watch a “making of” featurette that was long enough to really delve into film and what goes on behind the scenes. Right away, author Eric Schlosser talks about how they took some messages of the book, but started basically from scratch. This will no doubt piss the fans of the book off, but this can happen. Movies are based on books, not replicas of them. Anyway, this has interviews with screenwriter/director Richard Linklater, the producers, and members of the cast. They cover a lot of ground in this time by going to all the locations, describing the intentions, chatting about the budget, and so on.
Photo Gallery - I counted approximately 80 stills, which are not very neat or interesting at all. Most are just shots of the actors in character, and the majority is photographed in black & white.
The Meatrix (3:50) – This is spoof of the film trilogy that follows Leo the pig and Moopheus the cow, who takes him away and shows him the realities of fast food meat. This was entertaining, and just stupid enough to make me chuckle.
The Meatrix II (4:46) - Leo and Moopheus return and show us how that the living conditions for cows are pretty poor, and expose how a dairy farm operates. In the end Moopheus gets kidnapped.
The Meatrix II ½ (2:33) – This one goes inside a meat packing plant like the movie does. The villains explain that profit and speed is everything, despite work injuries. This ended rather suddenly I thought.
The Backwards Hamburger - This is exactly what is says it is. In reverse, we see how a hamburger gets to your mouth from the time it comes out from the cow. This is animated also. I appreciated the insertion of these special features for some brief, but satisfying excitement.
The Film: 8.5/10.0
The Video: 8.0/10.0
The Audio: 8.0/10.0
The Packaging: 7.5/10.0
The Extras: 8.0/10.0
The 411: For those who think that fast food employees don’t spit occasionally in your burger, or don’t use food that was accidentally dropped on the ground, you need come back to Earth at some point. Having experienced the occupation, I can say that Fast Food Nation is more truthful than you might think. Of course, it’s impossible to discover how true some aspects are, but it is also hard to ignore the images contained here when you decide to stop by the drive through window from now on. This DVD packed about as much bonus material as one could expect. I was entertained by the extras, and I don’t think I would have added anything else except for maybe a trailer. This is a worthwhile DVD to pick up, but wait a little bit until the price goes down. It is currently in that stage where it is $20. After some time, it will be $10. However, if you feel brave enough to just spend the money now, you will not be disappointed.
