Morgan Spurlock Watch



"The only cure for contempt is counter-contempt."
--H.L. Mencken

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Whiskey for 30 Days

Here's a parody of Spurlock's Super Size Me that's fairly clever.

The odd thing is, Spurlock has already desended into self-parody, and made a straight-faced TV show based on the same premise. The final episode of 30 Days featured a woman who "binged" on alcohol every day for thirty days. The episode was of course complete with the usual anti-capitalist jabs at the marketing and advertising practices of the liquor industry.

The parody film makes the important point that this of course isn't how manufacturers intend for their product to be used. Just about anything taken in in excess probably isn't going to be great for your health. And even the most aggressive of marketing campaigns don't recommend you consume one company's food or beverage product to the exclusion of everything else.

In any case, marketing and advertising are more about influencing brand loyalty than about influencing behavior. Few people decide to start drinking because of a beer commercial. Lots of people who have already decided to drink will switch brands (or, more likely, move to higher-priced brands) because of a beer or liquor ad.

August 05, 2005 in Other Spurlock Critics, Super Size Me, The TV Show | Permalink | Comments (44) | TrackBack (0)

Les Sayer

Sayer is a biology professor who replicated Spurlock's thirty-day experiment to teach his students about how the documentary medium can be abused to further a political agenda. The difference between Sayer and Spurlock: Sayer didn't deliberately double his daily calorie intake, nor did he stop exercising. He ate three meals per day at McDonalds, diversified what he ate, and was able to keep his calorie count between 2,000 and 3,000. Over 30 days, he lost 17 pounds. His blood pressure dropped. And his cholesterol basically remained the same. He suffered none of the effects Spurlock shows in Super Size Me.

July 11, 2005 in Other Spurlock Critics, Super Size Me | Permalink | Comments (32) | TrackBack (1)