Group Assignment

Lecture : English for Public Health

Lecturer : Irwandy, SKM., M.Sc.PH, M.Kes.

PAPER OF MOVIE REVIEW: FED UP

WRITTEN AND COMPOSED BY:

12TH GROUP

.
ENGLISH FOR PUBLIC HEALTH, CLASS B.

MAJOR PUBLIC HEALTH

PUBLIC HEALTH FACULTY
HASANUDDIN UNIVERSITY
 PREFACE

Assalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,

Firstly, let us thank and pray unto God, Allah SWT who has been giving us
all the blessing, pleasant, and chance for finishing this paper which presents the
review of a movie which is titled ‘Sicko’ as an assignment from Public Health
English Lecture.

The authors realize that there are so many mistakes and imperfection in this
paper, because of those things, the authors hope there will be critics and suggestion
for the authors. That is all about the preface, wish this paper may be useful for
everyone.

Thank you.

Makassar, 3rd of November 2019.

I
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

PREFACE ..................................................................................................................... I
TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................................. II
I. PRELIMINARY.................................................................................................. 1
1.1 Background ..................................................................................................... 1
1.2 Problems Formulation. ................................................................................... 2
1.3 Purposes. ......................................................................................................... 2
II. EXPLANATION ................................................................................................. 4
2.1 A Little About ‘Fed Up’. ................................................................................... 4
2.2 Stephanie Soechtig, the Author of The Movie ‘Sicko’..................................... 4
2.3 Movie Review. ................................................................................................. 6
III. CLOSING ......................................................................................................... 8
3.1 Conclusion. ...................................................................................................... 8
3.2 Suggestion. ...................................................................................................... 8
REFERENCE ............................................................................................................. 9

II
 I. PRELIMINARY

1.1 Background

Movie is a unique experiment in the visual arts which took place in the first
three decades of this century. In its pure state it survives in the private efforts of a
few courageous individuals; and occasional flares, reminiscent of a distinguished
past, light up the mass production of the movie industry, which permitted the new
medium to become a comfortable technique for popular storytelling. The movie
review is a popular way for critics to assess a movie’s overall quality and determine
whether or not they think the movie is worth recommending.

The obesity rate in America has skyrocketed over the past few decades,
especially among children, and the advocacy doc Fed Up, produced and narrated
by Katie Couric, pins the blame firmly on the rise in our consumption of processed
foods containing added sugar. In theory, you can subsist entirely on Snickers and
McNuggets (and some vitamin supplements) and not gain an ounce, so long as
you’re burning more calories than you ingest. Daily monitoring is too much of a
pain in the ass for most people, though, and kids in particular are shaky on portion
control, so the movie does make a solid (if uncinematic) case for change.

Fed Up alternates between regurgitated facts (often presented in snazzy

animated interludes), talking-head interviews, and a “human angle” involving a few
regular folks who are struggling with the problem in question. The facts are by far
the most persuasive element, especially when it comes to type 2 diabetes, which
used to be called adult-onset diabetes. In 1980, there were zero cases among
children; in 2010, there were over 50,000. Something’s causing that epidemic, and
diet is the most likely culprit, as the shift coincides with aggressive efforts by the
food industry to peddle fattening junk to school kids. Still, as usual, most of this
information would be more useful in detailed written form, rather than served up as
soundbites related by the authors of books on the subject. (Michael Pollan is one of
those interviewed, and Fed Up is essentially a greasy snack compared to the
gourmet meal that is Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History Of Four
Meals.)

1
 Still, the movie gets its point across ably enough using journalism that it
doesn’t really need four fat teenagers to record video diaries about their unhappiness
with their weight and their inability to do anything about it. For one thing, all four
kids have parents who are nearly as big as they are, which tends to undermine Fed
Up’s argument that greedy corporations and our cowardly government (even
Michelle Obama gets scolded!) are to blame for the rise in childhood obesity. More
than that, though, using crying children as a blatant emotional appeal seems
manipulative—a problem with the movie in general. At one point, the viewer is
informed that encouraging kids to exercise is all but pointless, as it takes an hour
and 15 minutes of bicycling to burn off the calories contained in a single 20-ounce
soda. That’s true, but it implies that people have to strenuously work off every
calorie they eat, when in fact we all burn 1,000-plus calories per day doing
absolutely nothing except breathing. Exercising absolutely helps, so long as it isn’t
viewed as a license to pig out, and claiming it doesn’t in order to emphasize the
importance of diet is disingenuous. Nothing is gained when documentaries simplify
complex issues so that they can remain “on message.”

This paper is about a movie review of a great documentary movie, which is

titled Fed Up, which is a 2014 American documentary movie directed, written and
produced by Stephanie Soechtig. The movie focuses on the causes of obesity in the
US, presenting evidence showing that the large quantities of sugar in processed
foods are an overlooked root of the problem, and points to the
monied lobbying power of "Big Sugar" in blocking attempts to enact policies to
address the issue.

1.2 Problems Formulation.

1.2.1 What is the movie about in general?

1.2.2 Who is the author?
1.2.3 How is the movie?

1.3 Purposes.

1.3.1 To know abou the movie titled ‘Sicko’ (2007)

1.3.2 To know about the author of the movie.

2
1.3.3 To give a review of the movie.

3
 II. EXPLANATION

2.1 A Little About ‘Fed Up’.

The movie “Fed Up” features top food experts like Michael Pollan, Marion
Nestle, Robert Lustig, and Mark Bittman arguing that the food industry’s supposed
“solutions” for fighting obesity and disease are not only making the problems
worse–they’re creating the problems. The film also dives deep into issues
surrounding the government’s involvement in subsidizing and endorsing the sale
and marketing of unhealthy products to adults and children.

Directed by Stephanie Soechtig and narrated by Katie Couric, “Fed Up”

discounts the dietary mantra that people are obese because they lack self-control
and eat too much. The real culprit is sugar, which is described as being as addictive
as cocaine. The statistics roll out: Since 1995 the government has provided $8
billion in subsidies for corn-based sweeteners. Half of all US school districts serve
fast food. Type 2 diabetes diagnosed among adolescents has gone from zero cases
in 1980 to 57,638 as of 2010. Even so-called thin people have to worry. According
to this film, about 40 percent of normal weight people have the same metabolic
dysfunction as those who are obese.

Some of the sweeteners sound straight from the good earth (agave nectar) and
some straight from the lab (maltodextrin), but Stephanie Soechtig’s eye-opening
film makes clear that they’re interchangeable in terms of their cumulative harmful
effects on the human body. And so the U.S. finds itself in a health crisis, with
diabetes in children reaching epidemic proportions.

2.2 Stephanie Soechtig, the Author of The Movie ‘Sicko’.

Stephanie Soechtig is an American award-winning filmmaker, writer, and

producer. President and CEO of the company Atlas Films, she has directed
several award winning movies. She began her career in 2000 by producing
documentaries for 20/20 and Primetime Live. In 2002, she won an Oscar for
her documentary ‘Bowling for Columbine’. Around this time, she also covered
the presidential election in ‘Good Morning America.’ Her documentary

4
‘Tapped,’ which dealt with the several health and environmental issues
surrounding the bottled water industry, also gained her much acclaim. While
the ‘Fortune Magazine’ dubbed her as one of the "most innovative women in
food and drink,” she has also directed many political campaign commercials,
short films, and videos for nonprofit groups. She has worked for ABC News as
well as Fox News.

Stephanie Soechtig is an award-winning writer, producer, and documentary

film director. Her most recent film, Under the Gun, received a prolonged standing
ovation when it premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. Lionsgate and Epix
acquired the award-winning film, which critics called "masterfully crafted" and "the
best film on firearms since the 2002's Oscar-winning doc Bowling for Columbine."
Two years earlier, FED UP, premiered at Sundance where it was acquired by
Radius/TWC and received a wide theatrical release. A New York Times Critic's
Pick, many have likened FED UP to Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth for the way
we eat. The film spotlighted our addiction to sugar and the ensuing obesity
epidemic, and succeeded in bringing the issue into the mainstream.

Stephanie's directorial debut documentary, Tapped, focused on the high cost

-- to both the environment and our health -- of the bottled water industry. Hailed by
critics as "stunning" and "whip-smart," Tapped swept film festivals across the
country while picking up six awards for Best Documentary Feature. Stephanie
began her career producing documentaries for 20/20 and Primetime Live. She
covered the 2000 presidential elections for Good Morning America and worked
with ABC's long-form unit to produce Planet Earth hosted by Leonardo DiCaprio.
She then brought her documentary skills to Fox where she produced network
specials for Bill O'Reilly before moving on to produce his daily show, The O'Reilly
Factor. Stephanie went on to produce VH1's My Coolest Years and launched E!
News's The Daily Ten before joining forces with Michael and Michelle Walrath in
2008 to start Atlas Films with the goal of creating films that educate and inspire.
Stephanie graduated cum laude, from NYU, with a degree in Journalism where she
also minored in Cinema Studies. Dubbed by Fortune Magazine as one of the "Most

5
Innovative Women in Food and Drink," Stephanie has also directed political
campaign commercials, short films, and viral videos for nonprofit groups, including
the Environmental Working Group and Food and Water Watch.

2.3 Movie Review.

Most trenchantly, “Fed Up” shows the shortsightedness of the “eat less,
exercise more” formula when 80% of packaged foods — including those that pass
themselves off as “natural” — contain some form of sugar, an addictive substance.
That formula continues to demonize people, as evidenced by the documentary’s
affecting portraits of obese teens and their families. With narration in the first
person by Katie Couric (an executive producer, along with Laurie David), Soechtig
puts mainstream clout to work to deliver a hard-hitting message. Her mix of archival
material, punchy graphics and concise talking-head commentary traces a troubling
modern history. It’s yet another story of governance by corporate lobby, as federal
policies put profit over public welfare — and even the first lady’s fitness campaign
plays nice with purveyors of sugar-packed products.

Testifying before Congress, food industry representatives spew the kind of

defensive double-talk that was once the domain of tobacco executives. One, looking
particularly miserable, insists that Ronald McDonald isn’t a marketing device for
reaching kids but a conduit of “magic and fun.”

What we got from the movie are:

 There is a worldwide epidemic of obesity.

 It is endangering our children.

 Increased sugar consumption is responsible.

6
  The food industry is responsible for our increased sugar consumption
because it puts hidden sugar in processed foods, bombards us with
advertising, favors profits over health, and lobbies against regulation.

 The government is responsible because it has failed to control the food

industry.

The film has received mostly positive reviews and has been called
the Inconvenient Truth of the health movement. It was written and directed by
Stephanie Soechtig, whose earlier films attacked GMO foods and the bottled water
industry, and narrated by Katie Couric, who “gave anti-vaccine ideas a shot” on her
talk show in late 2013. The film shows families struggling with childhood obesity
and “experts” expressing their opinions. Their selection of “experts” is heavy on
politicians and journalists and light on nutrition scientists.

7
 III. CLOSING

3.1 Conclusion.

The movie “Fed Up” features top food experts like Michael Pollan, Marion
Nestle, Robert Lustig, and Mark Bittman arguing that the food industry’s supposed
“solutions” for fighting obesity and disease are not only making the problems
worse–they’re creating the problems. The film also dives deep into issues
surrounding the government’s involvement in subsidizing and endorsing the sale
and marketing of unhealthy products to adults and children.

While light on medical details, Fed Up makes a compelling political case for
how we got to this point and at least a few suggestions about how they can get out
of it. Personally, we think waiting for the government to solve this is politically
doubtful. Change will come one consumer at a time. Educate yourself and adjust
how you eat. Even small modifications like cutting out sodas and fruit drinks and
eating more real (not processed) foods can make a significant improvement in your
health and weight.

But overall, this is a great movie, it teaches us a lot and awares us about over
sugar consuming is very dangerous and we do need to do something to stay away
from obesity.

3.2 Suggestion.

8
 REFERENCE

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3253001/bio
https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/stephanie-soechtig-33872.php