HeilmannCraigAnnotation5

Craig Heilmann, Film Annotations

1. Title, director, and release year? // The Corporation //, Mark Achbar (2003) 2. What is the central argument or narrative of the film? This film to no surprise focuses mainly on corporations and the problems with them. It spoke about how a corporation is a money driven being and the inability for public control. It also mentioned the idea of the corporation as a psychopath. 3. What sustainability problems does the film draw out? The sustainability problem drawn out in this film stems from a political standpoint. Corporations use the fact that they have the rights and privileges of being treated like a person, without the repercussions of it. If they want to do something that isn’t necessarily legal they just have to pay off the regulators to get away with it. This becomes a legal problem just as much as a political one. 4. What parts of the film did you find most persuasive and compelling? Why? One of the most compelling parts that I found in the film was the segment on Nike when they talked about how the company actually put time limits on how long a worker had to assemble a piece of clothing or shoe. This is a perfect example of what is wrong with the world today; promoting the over consumption of goods by making a corporation put time limits on its workers. The bit about the corporation as a psychopath was also very intriguing; talking about how it portrays all of the attributes that would qualify one as a psychopath. 5. What parts of the film were you not compelled or convinced by? Just as I thought the connection to a psychopath was compelling, I also felt it was a little cheesy and overanalyzed. The WHO checklist took it a little too far, but I still felt like it was an interesting idea in its essence.

6. What additional information does this film compel you to seek out? Where do you want to dig deeper and what connections do you want to make with other issues, factors, problems, etc.? If groups like the FDA, who says they are here to protect us, lie about whether or not our milk is healthy and safe, what else are they lying about? What does that say about groups who don’t claim to be there for our greater good?

7. What audiences does the film best address? What kind of imagination is fostered in viewers? Do you think the film is likely to change the way viewers think about and act on environmental problems? Even though it would be great to make the CEO of Nike watch this film it might be kind of boring for him because I’m sure he already knows all about it. This film really speaks out to the everyday consumer who is really dominated by the mega corporations of the world. 8. What kinds of action or points of intervention are suggested by the film? Well the film really made the audience realize that there really isn’t much we can do to stop corporations. They have become so strong that even regulations are just money to them. They can pay their way out of any predicament if need be. We need government officials to step in and take a strong stand on this issue to not let corporations continue to get away with what they are. 9. What could have been added to this film to enhance its environmental educational value? I think that the film did a great job portraying the inner workings of the corporation, getting down to the nitty gritty that most people wouldn’t know about. I think if the film went one step further to compare it to smaller companies that would have really been helpful to get another perspective on the topic.