Good Essay About Super Size Me

Super Size Me is a documentary which was produced and starred by Morgan Spurlock. It revolves around Spurlock who offers to carry out an experiment to study the effects of fast food and inadequate exercise on his health. After consulting professional doctors and nutritionists, he decides to eat MacDonald foods for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Despite knowing the dangers awaiting him, he continues with this experiment for one month. Super Size Me is an excellent documentary which uses humor to sensitize the audience on the dangers of the wrong decisions they make regarding their diet. Upon the completion of his experiment, Spurlock proves that the high prevalence of obesity in the United States of America (USA) should be blamed on the consumption of fast foods. In order to put across his message, Spurlock uses a sense of humor to help him challenge the people without necessarily offending them. This helps him to establish a logical and emotional appeal to the audience whom he expects to learn from his experiment.
Spurlock amuses the audience when he decides to conduct an experiment with his own life. Although he is aware of the dangers associated with the fast foods, he decides to heavily rely on them. He visits the MacDonald restaurants for his daily meals. More interestingly, when he visits these facilities, he orders all the foods that are available in their menu. After choosing to use MacDonald’s products as his only meals, he even goes ahead to place large orders. When he is asked about his oversize consumption, he humorously answers, ‘yes, I eat meat, meat, sugar and fat for a month.’ This is a very perplexing behavior because it is quite difficult to find someone who readily offers to endanger his health for the sake of sensitizing the society. it really amuses when one realizes that a person readily accept to adopt a full fast food diet despite knowing very well that it is harmful to himself. This represents the irresponsible people who succumb to their wrong decisions.
Initially, he suffers a blow when his body rejects the new diet. At this point, everyone expects him to abandon his experiment. Despite his initial body reaction, he surprisingly continues taking the same foods on a daily basis. Indeed, it is quite comical when he now claims that he enjoys the new food. This is so entertaining because it is a very extraordinary act which no one can entertain under normal circumstances. However, to Spurlock, it is an amusing act which he openly does without disguising his identity. After realizing that the diet would be harmful to him, he does not bother to stop, but continues taking it up to the very end of the experiment. This amusing experience is used to enlighten people on how they intentionally jeopardize their lives as a result of the wrong decisions they often make. This is an aspect of this documentary which enables Spurlock to appeal to the audience.
In order to appeal more to his audience, Spurlock incorporates funny characters in his documentary. Names like Big Mac, First Graders and the Overweight Daughter are relevant to the context of the documentary. Moreover, he goes ahead to comically describe the behavior and actions of these characters. For instance, he says that the Big Mac has enthusiastically consumed over 19,000 Big Macs. At the same time, he describes Alexandra as his future ex-wife. Although it might appear meaningless, it amuses to refer to a caring and concerned accomplice as a future ex-wife. It cracks ribs especially when one realizes that it is Alexandra who uses her vegan skills to observe him. In addition, Spurlock amuses the audience when he describes the First Graders as big fast food consumers who can not remember anything, but MacDonald. Instead, ‘they can neither remember Jesus nor George Washington the same way they do for Ronald McDonald who is closely associated with their preferred diet. However entertaining it may appear, Spurlock uses these characters to show how people can be possessed with the fast foods. Just like the Big Mac, a lot of people do consume large quantities of these fast foods without caring about the dangers it posses to their health.
The documentary excellently seeks to establish emotional and logical appeals when it sheds more light on the dangerous practices people always do. When he decides to use his own life as an example, he appeals to the people to be mindful of their actions. Although he was aware that the daily consumption of large quantities of fast foods is harmful for his health, he does not fear doing it for a whole month. At the same time, he defiantly minimized physical exercises despite knowing that it is the best way to tackle the obesity menace. This is quite appealing because it proves how people intentionally decide to engage in activities which put their lives o danger. Although they are informed that obesity is caused by poor diet, a lot of people do not care about it. Thus, the documentary is trying to sensitize people not to behave like the overweight daughter who attaches a corporate logo to her solutions, but to adopt a healthier lifestyle necessary for their comfort.
As an excellent documentary, Super Size Me uses important aspects of cinematography. This is evidenced in the use of music and graphic illustrations. For instance, there are graphic images of a stomach stamping operation. For example, at the end of the film, Spurlock fixes a tombstone in which he writes ‘Ronald McDonald (1954–2012)’ to signify the tragic consequences of obesity. Such animations are very important in supplementing the documentary and making it livelier. Besides, they will supplement the moving pictures by creating a variety and alternative platform to be used by different audiences involved in the viewing of the documentary. As a typical film, it was necessary to incorporate appropriate tracks into it. These are very important in helping it to achieve its goals. First, the right of choice of music would be instrumental in creating the appropriate mood. As a horrific and amusing documentary, the songs had to be chosen to suit each of these scenes.
In conclusion, Super Size Me is an excellent documentary which exploits the exceptional characters of the daring Spurlock to appeal to the audiences. Actually, the experiences of the protagonist are typical of the contemporary society in which people become victims of their own actions. Spurlock uses humor to enlighten and entertain the audience on the rampant increase in obesity in USA. Indeed, this is a very insightful, thought-provoking, horrific, entertaining documentary which uses humor to appeal to the readers to be mindful of their dietary decisions.