Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

2004 was the year of the documentary. Documentaries were huge over the past year from "Control Room" to "Outfoxed". Obviously the biggest of the documentaries was Michael Moore's film "Fahrenheit 9/11". After seeing that film, I was definitely interested in seeing other documentaries. Another great documentary I had seen last summer was "The Corporation" which is based on Joel Bakan's book of the same name. Unfortunately it was shown in few theaters other than in big cities like where I live. After seeing the film, I went out and bought the (overpriced) book. I had to laugh at the fact that the book was barely 100 pages and was priced at (...) at Border's. Unlike most films that were originally books, "The Corporation" remained faithful. For 2 1/2 I was engrossed with the film. The film kicks off with the subject of how the environment is effected by corporate America, which eventually led to sweat shops. The topic of the dangers of globalization is nothing new but it certainly made me look at drinking milk in a whole new light. If you drink milk, make sure that there is no 'special' ingredient (like farmers trying to chemically force their cows to produce more milk). I also was seeing red when two newscasters in Florida were pretty much shut down on this particular story no thanks to upper management at the tv station they worked for (owned by Rupert Murdoch). I was also repulsed by the suggestion that IBM had donated some of their equipment to Adolf Hilter so he can keep track of the population numbers in his concentration camps. I really don't know how much truth is to that suggestion but it is pretty compelling, if not revolting (if it is true). Another fascinating segment in the film was how a town in South America revolted against its fascist regime because the government officials then made the locals pay for water, including rain water they would collect. Who on god's green water is greedy enough to charge for rain water?! What really turned me off was when the film briefly discussed about advertising and how marketers aim towards children. I don't have any kids (nor do I plan on having any) but I felt dirty after seeing this segment because I enjoyed some of the products by the companies that were aiming at kids to nag their parents into buying their stuff for them. Michael Moore does make a cameo appearance in the film. He shows a couple of clips from one of his earlier films "The Big One" in which he goes after corporate America. I think Michael's role in the film was to provide some levity in an otherwise dour film. For me personally I loved this film. I had no problems sitting through the 2 1/2 hours. Some people might have issues with that. I always was aware of the dangers of globalization and free trade so nothing really new in this film was talked about. This film is unequivocaly one sided since it does criticize big corporations but then again the whole point of this film is to exposing corporate America and just how corrupt corporations can be. I am so glad that this film is finally coming out on dvd this spring. I am definitely planning on buying it. It is one of my favorite documentaries of all time.