Rating of
2/4
Anti-Wal-Mart Movie Relies on Shock, Not Reasoning
TheOtherRainMan - wrote on 07/12/08
Adolf Hitler, Saddam Hussain, H. Lee Scott. What do all of these people have in common? They have some sort of hand in oppression. Hitler oppressed the Jews, Hussain oppressed the country of Iraq, and H. Lee Scott is oppressing the low-wage workers of America with an institution called Wal-Mart. But how is this company hurting Americans? The film "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price" tries to be the valiant knight in Shining Armor, but sadly, that armor needs more polish.
The film hits upon numerous issues within its 90 minute run time. It starts off with the shut down of the good ole mom and pop stores by featuring a hardware store ran by the Hunter family that was shut down upon the arrival of a Wal-Mart. The issue comes up later in the film my showing how the Esry family was robbed of their long running grocery store by the arrival of guess who... Wal-Mart.
The film also addresses the woes of the employees working at Wal-Mart. It shows numerous employees (both ex-employees and current) who complain of the low wages, long work hours, and the lack of trust. It also goes on to how Wal-Mart keeps being able to keep its prices low by the use of anti-union propaganda and anti-union teams.
Along with all that, it hits on how they hurt the environment, the sweatshops in China, the crimes around Wal-Mart parking lots, and how everyone fought "the man" and stopped Wal-Mart from conquering their town.
To briefly address the issue concerning Wal-Mart, I feel that Wal-Mart brings jobs and keeps most of them in-state, but they honestly need to treat their employees better.
The film, although noble in its efforts, is a sad excuse for a documentary, let alone a poor excuse for indie filmmaking. The quality of the camera is not the best, but it does suffice enough for this film. The film also manages to jump around way too much from one subject to another instead of focusing on one topic.
What ruins the film though is the film's conclusion. Instead on ending on a summary of the film's points, it ends with a list of stopped Wal-Marts and the burning words "Victory!" flashing on screen. Credits then roll. This takes away any passion or satisfaction that film has conjured up.
Even though his intent is probably well meant by making it available online for free, Director Robert Greenwald ("Xanadu","Breaking Up") fails to make a lasting impression. The severe huge issue that comes is that he does not allow the viewer to think for themselves. Greenwald simply put tells the viewer (through talking head interviews, a bad comic segment, poor use of graphical diagrams) that Wal-Mart is evil and that it needs to be stopped.
A good documentary can have an opinion, but lets the viewer think for themselves and decide on what they feel. Wal-Mart: HCLP informs on the evil of Wal-Mart, but does not give the viewer the ability to find the opinion themselves.
Rating: C-
Star Rating: ** out of ****
PROS
+ Brings up Important Issues
+ Shows Dark Issues Caused By Wal-Mart
+ Available for free viewing
CONS
- Too Biased
- Horrible Editing
- Felt out of order
- Does Not Let The Viewer Think For Themselves
- Concludes Terribly
Not Rated by MPAA.
Run Time: 97 min.
RECOMMENDATION: MSNBC produced a Documentary called "The Age of Wal-Mart" which gives a more comprehensive view on Wal-Mart and its outcomes.
Things I Could Have Done Instead:
* Got a Job at Wal-Mart
* Protest Wal-Mart
* Smuggle Mexicans into the Country
* Try and start a labor union for Wal-Mart workers
* Start a Supermarket - RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET FROM WAL-MART
