Parents' Guide to

Fast Food Nation

By Cynthia Fuchs, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 16+

Bloody exposé; not for kids. Want fries with that?

Movie R 2006 106 minutes
Fast Food Nation Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 17+

Based on 3 parent reviews

Kara463
Kara463 Adult
February 26, 2016
age 18+

definitely not a movie I would recommend

Although educational, I would not recommed this movie to anyone. The sexual content is unnecessary and disgusting. Anyone with even a smidgen of moral sense would not allow their children (or themselves) to view this. Had to fast forward sex scenes and did not watch entire movie because I was appalled. Sick, sick, sick...And don't get me started about the profanity! Another reason it swiftly got deleted from the DVR.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much consumerism
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
christian2011
christian2011 Adult
January 8, 2012
age 15+

A Very Gritty Food Documental Film.

Fast Food Nation is a movie that portrays the dramatic independancies between workers and employees at fast food themed industries and restaurants, and the stress involved in the business of making and trying to sell the "Big One", a burger. In several parts of the movie, it shows actual yet very graphic and grisly scenes of cattle being shot, skinned, dismembered, and having their organs taken out by workers in a slaughter house. There's alot of strong profanity in this film, nearly every sentence has the f-word in it. There are three sex scenes in which the slaughter house manager has sex with female employees to make him give them a job, and the aftermath of him and another female smoking drugs.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much consumerism
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
See all 3 parent reviews

What's the Story?

FAST FOOD NATION follows the victims of the U.S. fast food industry. Don (Greg Kinnear), a marketer for fictionalized restaurant Mickey's, is troubled to learn of the meat packing plant's terrible working conditions and contaminations, but is told by two veterans of the business that he can't stop the corporate suits. The story of meat packing plant workers follows Sylvia (Catalina Sandino Moreno), her sister Coco (Ana Claudia Talancón) and boyfriend Raul (Wilmer Valderrama), who endure a horrible journey across the border to find work. Coco and Raul get jobs at the plant and succumb to drug addiction because their jobs are so miserable. In another part of the picture, the counter kids at the Mickey's find their own resistance. Brian (Paul Dano) spits in the obnoxious customers' orders, but Amber (Ashley Johnson) begins to research the production process and finds new friends among college-aged eco-activists. But for all their energy and creativity in protesting, they still can't slow down the system.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (3):
Kids say: Not yet rated

Unabashedly didactic, the movie creates a fictional narrative from the facts presented in Eric Schlosser's 2001 exposé of McDonald's corrupt practices, also called Fast Food Nation. (A kids' version of the book was published under the title Chew On This.) As it does so, it adopts seemingly meandering structure, much like other films directed by the ever-inventive Richard Linklater. Such a structure makes sense here, as it underlines the connections between the different sorts of people affected by Mickey's corner-cutting policies.

Fast Food Nation doesn't end well, but it does end powerfully. As Sylvia at last gives in and takes a job on the killing floor, she sees for the first time -- and the camera shows explicitly -- what she's been hearing about since she arrived in the U.S. It's a gruesome, unforgettable sight, and she, standing in for the rest of us, is suitably horrified.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the ethics of producing fast food. Why do the producers sacrifice quality to save money? What is a corporation's responsibility in protecting its workers? How honest do corporations that produce food need to be? Should they disclose errors and regularly occurring contaminations? How does this movie show connections between the corruption that runs throughout the company's hierarchy (from floor workers to managers to marketers to executives)? Do you think this drama -- which is based on a non-fiction book -- is more effective than a documentary on the same topic would have been? Why or why not?

Movie Details

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