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In 2004, documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock led viewers on a journey through Big Macs and fries to show the dangers of fast food in Super Size Me. But fast food has gotten better, right? And in Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken he sets out to take on fast food once again—by opening his own fast food restaurant.
Super Size Me 2 follows the filmmaker on his quest to examine the reportedly “new and improved” state of fast food. To explore how fast food can be “better,” he decides to open his own completely honest and authentic fast food restaurant. He works with strategists and consultants and marketing firms to choose the right menu items, create the right look, and tell the right story. And, at the same time, he works with a chicken farmer in Alabama to set up his own chicken farm to raise the chickens that will end up on the menu.
What starts out as the filmmaker’s mission to explore the fast food industry’s new “healthier” claims quickly turns into the idea to open a fast food restaurant, which then turns into a look at chicken farming and an exposé of “big chicken”—the five companies that control 99% of the chicken that we currently consume. It all seems somewhat unbalanced and unfocused, but viewers will definitely get the point.
In his signature easy-going, light-hearted style, Spurlock jokes around about marketing ploys and unhealthy “crispy” chicken while zeroing in on the topic that stands out to him much more than the fact that Americans don’t actually care that fried chicken is bad for them. Instead of continuing the story of consumers’ unhealthy eating habits, he turns his attention to the chicken industry—to the breeding of oversized, fast-growing chickens, the meaningless labels given to chicken (like “all natural,” “free range,” and “no added hormones”), and the way in which “big chicken” manipulates the system to keep local farmers indebted and under their control.
No matter how unfocused the story may be, Spurlock keeps it all simple and entertaining enough that audiences will pay attention. Some may say that he dumbs it down with animations and quirky analogies. But he’s the kind of sarcastic everyman who can fit right into any situation and connect with any kind of person in an attempt to get his point across. And though he doesn’t offer any solutions, he’s sure to open viewers’ eyes about the industry that produced their favorite chicken sandwich.
Maybe you already stop and think before you order a greasy Big Mac—but Super Size Me 2 will make you stop and think before you make the “healthier” choice of a chicken sandwich, too. It’s an entertaining and often shocking film about America’s other favorite fast food.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
