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Submitted by cinemascope on Fri, 2006-05-12 06:08. :: Contemporary
Movie title:
Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price
Directed by:
Robert Greenwald
Genre:
Documentary
Year:
2006
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Runtime:
95 minutes
Imdb:
Rating:
Synopsis
An examination of the effect of supermarket giant Wal-Mart on local communities in the US, with brief detours to the UK, and to investigate Wal-Mart's use of sweatshop labour in China.
An examination of the effect of supermarket giant Wal-Mart on local communities in the US, with brief detours to the UK, and to investigate Wal-Mart's use of sweatshop labour in China.
Review
The latest documentary from the director of Outfoxed, this documentary has to strike at a huge target, with many writhing heads. As a result, there aren't may direct hits on the target. By the end of the movie we know that Wal-Mart ruthlessly preys on small businesses in small towns, driving them out. We know the retail giant pays peanuts and doesn't provide decent health car provision. We know they pollute local waterways by storing fertiliser in their car parks, and we know that by not providing adequate security their car parks become hotspots of violent crime. What Greenwald doesn't provide us with is any kind of potential solution to these problems or any in-depth examination of these corporate crimes beyond the superficial. In the wake of documentary successes from Michael Moore and Morgan Spurlock it can also seem like Wal-Mart... lacks an authorial voice, and as such the narrative can feel baggy. Not bad then, but unfulfilling.
The latest documentary from the director of Outfoxed, this documentary has to strike at a huge target, with many writhing heads. As a result, there aren't may direct hits on the target. By the end of the movie we know that Wal-Mart ruthlessly preys on small businesses in small towns, driving them out. We know the retail giant pays peanuts and doesn't provide decent health car provision. We know they pollute local waterways by storing fertiliser in their car parks, and we know that by not providing adequate security their car parks become hotspots of violent crime. What Greenwald doesn't provide us with is any kind of potential solution to these problems or any in-depth examination of these corporate crimes beyond the superficial. In the wake of documentary successes from Michael Moore and Morgan Spurlock it can also seem like Wal-Mart... lacks an authorial voice, and as such the narrative can feel baggy. Not bad then, but unfulfilling.
