Disjointed and unrefined as it may be, Fast Food Nation still remains one of America's most potent in-house criticisms of our horrid low-rent eating establishments and the underlying, skull-crushingly ridiculous bureaucracy that drives an inhumane greed. Largely flawed with a strained and unfocused narrative, the ambitious non-fiction material from which it was based does not get a proper transition to screen. Tackling the abhorrent underbelly of our Ronald Macdonald culture, the film comes with a vision knowledgeable enough to educate and shock at least some of it's viewers into becoming more conscious about what they are actually putting inside themselves when dining via a drive-thru. It is with constant, poorly implemented cross-cutting to subplots mainly tying in illegal immigration, that the powerful themes begin to get lost. While certainly ambitious, the multi-faceted approach into every surrounding stereotype's participation into this dangerous machine called corporate farming, does rapidly begin to detract potency from a vital and urgent heart.
It is my hope that viewers won't get bogged down in the excessive and minor subplots and characterizations, instead appreciating the value this rare type of movie achieves: one that delicately balances social awareness and fun. It is perhaps that precise balance which may, despite much critical panning, help find that delicate center of middle American masses it desperately seeks to engage, in turn becoming a greater triumph then any short-lived award.
It is my hope that viewers won't get bogged down in the excessive and minor subplots and characterizations, instead appreciating the value this rare type of movie achieves: one that delicately balances social awareness and fun. It is perhaps that precise balance which may, despite much critical panning, help find that delicate center of middle American masses it desperately seeks to engage, in turn becoming a greater triumph then any short-lived award.