Fed Up

Movies have been, since the invention of them, a place to be entertained, to escape into some other place, time or situation, but at times, we need to learn something so we can be better informed individuals. And what a better way to achieve this than that of the documentary. As I've mentioned in prior reviews, I love documentaries, because the filmmakers of them challenge the way we think or the way we can become conformed to a certain stance. We've seen so many great documentaries: "Murderball", "An Inconvenient Truth", "Looking for Sugarman", "The Cove", "Super Size Me", "Bowling for Columbine" "Capitalism: A Love Story", "The Tillman Story", just to mention a handful. When I viewed "Fed Up", it started a bit slow, but as it evolved, some of the information I knew about, however the parts I had no idea, just blew me away.

Upending the conventional wisdom of why we gain weight and how to lose it, this unearths a dirty secret of the American food industry that far more of us get sick from what we eat than anyone has previously realized. Filmmaker Stephanie Soechtig and TV journalist Katie Couric leads us through this potent expose that uncovers why-- despite media attention, the public's fascination with appearance, and government policies to combat childhood obesity-- generations of American children will now live shorter than their parents did.
This covers four young teenagers, Brady Kluge, Maggie Valentine, Wesley Randall, and Joe Lopez and their daily struggle to lose and keep off the weight because of their obesity. These kids already have Type 2 Diabetes, and are asking for more chronic metabolic diseases. And if this wasn't enough, but the stigma of being huge is overwhelming as well. And to my amazement, the statistics are alarming! Statistically, if we don't change our diets, in two decades, 95% of Americans will be obese, and by year 2050, 1 out of 3 Americans will be diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. Right now, 30% of Americans are obese. With these statistics, why do the food companies still produce all these processed foods which oppose the very workings of the human body? What else, of course, but for the money.

Others interviewed in this are Dr. David Kessler, Dr. Deborah Cohen, Kelly D. Brownell, Phd., David Allison Phd., Marion Nestle Phd., Sen. Tom Harkin, past President Bill Clinton, Michelle Obama, Robert Lustig, Michael Pollan, Dr. James Gavin, Mark Brittman, Michael Moss, and Sonya Grier Phd.

This is an exhaustive investigation of why we are obese, that with all the exercise programs, we still cannot lose weight, to what we can do to counteract this serious problem. The obesity problem is the number one health crisis in this country, and if left unchecked, we won't have people living very long lives like once occurred. This was well directed with passion and grit by Stephanie Soechtig ("Tapped" (Documentary) '09). She hasn't achieved a lot of work, but after this she WILL receive more work. It was written by veteran documentary writer, Mark Monroe ("Morning Light" (Doc.) '08, "The Cove" (Doc.) '09, "The Tillman Story" (Doc.) '10, "Chasing Ice" (Doc.) '12, "Sound City" (Doc.) '13) and Soechtig ("Tapped" (Doc.) '09). This was incredibly comprehensive and exhaustive--a truly must see for all who are concerned what food items they are putting in their mouths. The evidence is awe-inspiring, and begs our own investigation of what is really going on with our food and the food industry.

All I can say is, if you are truly concerned about the food you eat, I beseech all to take time out of your busy schedule, and plan to see this--it IS an eye opener to say the least.

Out of 4 Stars: 4                            Rated: PG                           92mins.