****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
Fast Food Nation has brilliant acting and great themes strung around a loose narrative that mimics real-life. I think where it throws off some viewers is that, as in real-life, there's no apparent pay-off. The ending initially feels abrupt, and the fates of the characters unresolved. In that regards, it's essentially a slice-of-life kind of picture. You want to know more about Kinnear's character, the Mexican immigrants and the teenage girl, but you're robbed of them by story's end.However, upon reflection, you really do get the necessary resolve, albeit not a BIG dramatic movie one. (Spoilers ahead)Kinnear starts off with integrity, but in the end, does the practical thing and basically sells out so that he doesn't lose his job. To the character's credit, he does mention that further study is needed, but it's a deferral to someone else, passing off the buck so that he doesn't have to deal with what he's discovered. And yet, despite this, you empathize with the character, which shows us just how it is that the evil corporate machine continues unabated. Kinnear's character is no hero. But it's hard to say he's a villain either. He's ultimately weak, which is a trait that's all too common in a society beset by pressures and choosing compromise.The Mexican girl, who up till the end, manages to maintain a measure of integrity, is suddenly forced to comprise everything, including her very person, for the sake of saving her husband after an plant-accident leaves him with hospitals bills they can't afford. Her story is the darkest and most tragic and the one the film ends on. She, in many respects, is, like the cattle, prodded and pushed to their eventual slaughter and dismemberment. Her tears at the end are for the poor creatures, herself and really all the migrant workers who are exploited by a corporate/political machine that doesn't care about them, and will use them up in the belief they're actually doing them a favor.The teenage girl is the story's hopeful side. She yearns for a life of integrity, and is wise enough to learn the lessons imparted upon her from an uncle (who has past regrets), using it to make some courageous stances, one that fails, but one that succeeds. She leaves the film on a new life path of proactive movement, away from the trap, and with like-minded individuals.Everything about these three characters is extremely realistic and human. It's a great film that will benefit from discussion afterwards.
