Fed Up Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.0

Fed Up Blu-ray Movie Review

Eat to live, don't live to eat.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 21, 2014

Soda is the cigarettes of the 21st century.

Fed Up didn't do much box office business, but one must wonder how many theatergoers sat down to watch with a concession stand-purchased Coke and box of M&Ms, and how many of them resented that choice afterwards? Fed Up shoots straight and doesn't flinch. Sugar is bad. Really bad. Especially if it comes in processed foods. A hint of sugar? That's OK. Natural sugars in fruits that come armed with enough fiber to combat the nasty side effects? Those are OK, too. Chugging down a tub of Metamucil after eating a cake? Don't invest in Procter & Gamble. The film, directed by Documentarian Stephanie Soechtig (Tapped) and narrated by television personality Katie Couric, lays down the law and provides a convincing case against the food industry through the prism of the rapid increase in childhood diabetes and obesity in the era of processed foods, sugar substitutes, misleading medical advice, incomplete food labels, and other enemies to a healthy body. It's fascinating and frightening stuff and a must-see for anyone concerned about the health and well-being of their own bodies, their family's bodies, and the general welfare of the world around them.

The big picture.

In this new century, more children will die from obesity than they will hunger, even in the era of "low fat foods" and an increase in gym memberships. The film examines the role of sugars in processed foods as the main culprit, along with a culture centered on food and the big corporations that promote unhealthy options, even in the guise of "healthier" alternatives. It examines how all calories are not created equal; calories in almonds, for example, are not the same as calories in a Coke. It studies the effects of sugar on the brain and the addiction that follows. It focuses on the government's role in promoting healthier eating, school food options, and "visible" fat versus "invisible" fat. Finally, it interweaves the story of several teenagers -- Brady Kluge, Maggie Valentine, Wesley Randall, and Joe Lopez -- and chronicles the effect obesity has on their lives and their struggles to drop the unhealthy weight.

Plans, plans, plans: the Atkins Plan, the Daniel Plan (which is actually pretty much in line with Fed Up, at least in terms of blaming sugar), Jenny Craig, NutriSystem. Miracle cures, sure-fire products, Hydorxycut, eight-minute abs, low calories, fat free, gluten free, no GMO, organic, all-natural, and so on and so forth. There's the megabucks food industry, and there's the megabucks health and fitness industry. And a lot of the time, they're all in cahoots, maybe not on the surface and maybe not on some legal document, but they go hand-in-hand in continuing, not curing, the era of obesity and the diseases caused by unhealthy diets. They're not all bad, and most of them, on some level, mean well, but none of it matters if people don't know why this is good for them or that is bad for them, if they don't have real knowledge beyond slogans and hearsay. Even the government is in on the health train game. There are prominent political figures advocating for people to "move" and others passing legislation about what can and cannot be in school cafeterias and vending machines and all but inciting riots in schools from kids who don't want to be force-fed what the politicians want them to eat. And those poor eating choices do start at home, influenced by advertising and cute mascots and bright colors, no doubt, but the food isn't being air-dropped into kitchens of forced into mouths at gunpoint. Fed Up's answer, ultimately, is more government intervention, a good idea in theory but, honestly, if there's anything more bloated than America's teenagers these days, it's the government. The real answer, really, is knowledge, and people choosing to not support the companies making unhealthy products. That's not to say that it's easy. It's not (and, yes, that comes from personal experience). But it's doable. And necessary.

Spreading that knowledge is where Fed Up shines. There's a bag of Market Pantry (Target store brand) sugar in the Liebman kitchen that's become a running joke because the bag says it's "naturally fat free." If there's a better example of bad food advertising out there, it's still in the developmental stage and not on store shelves, because that's about as ridiculous as it gets. Fed Up looks beyond the immediate humor of the statement and states, in plain English, why that's such an absurd statement. It's factually true, sure, but "fat in" doesn't equal "fat out" on the belly or thighs. The film presents its case in the contexts of, for a lack of a better catch-all phrase, the "big food industry." It looks at the evolution of food advertising, the advent of processed foods and the era of "fat free" foods back in the 1980s and 1990s, and the science behind massive sugar intakes and its negative effects on the body, from fatigue to excess fat, from the mental science behind junk food cravings to the long lists of medication people take to "combat" the end result of too much sugar. By the end, audiences will look at food and food advertising in a whole new light, armed with basic information that's presented here in an easily understood fashion that gets to the heart of the matter in very convincing fashion.

Where the film falters, however, is in its failure to provide something like an "approved foods list" or some sugar detoxifying menu plan. It offers a website but no immediate feedback beyond the suggestion to simply "cook real food." How should people of differing body types work the plan into their lifestyle? How does a 6'4" athlete eat versus a 5'3" grandmother? The information is great, but not tailored to specific individuals. It is, then, more a starting point than a lifestyle plan, but as they say, it's that first step that matters most. The film also doesn't tackle the role of exercise in securing a healthier lifestyle. Exercise's benefits are discussed -- including the studies that brought forth the fitness revolution -- but it almost feels like physical fitness is almost dismissed out-of-hand at a few points. Whether that was the film's intent or not isn't clear, but resistance training and heart-healthy aerobics aren't a bad thing, they're just not the only thing. The film also fails to address the importance of consuming a certain amount of water in a diet (odd considering Director Stephanie Soechtig also made Tapped). It also never mentions things like vitamin and protein supplementation as part of a healthy diet.

Fed Up Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Fed Up wasn't made to sparkle in high definition. Anchor Bay's 1080p transfer, framed at 1.78:1, does what's required but never any more. Detail is satisfactory for a lower end HD video shoot. It picks serviceable facial and clothing lines and finds a little more stability in static shots that show things like brick work outside a school or the well-used lockers inside. Colors are bold but not quite so precise as they might have been with a bigger production. Colorful food packages jump out of the screen but sometimes take on a slightly warm feel. A yellow school bus, green grasses, and blue skies and water appear a little more technically stable and natural. Black levels satisfy, but flesh tones seem to range from slightly pasty to lightly warm. the image suffers through a few technical issues; light banding is visible around some of the static graphic images, minor noise appears at times, and there are a few instances of aliasing, including a very heavy and noticeable example on a rooftop at about the 33:27 mark. A stray hair-like object sits on the screen for a few seconds, visible at the 6:23 mark. It's an imperfect image but it generally satisfies given the limitations of the source and the blandness of the material.

Fed Up Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Fed Up features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The film begins with some scattered voiceovers presenting throughout the stage, including a heavy rear channel presence. Supportive sound effects are aided by a solid, but in no way overpowering, low end. Generally, the stage proves very wide in terms of music and sound effects in its open, but most of the rest of the presentation is little more than dialogue and much lighter music and sound effects. The spoken word plays with natural, commanding presence from the front-center speaker, whether interview clips or voiceover narration. There are a few camcorder shots that feature much more shallow dialogue. Note that users cannot switch between the English and Spanish language tracks "on the fly." One or the other must be selected through the main menu.

Fed Up Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray release of Fed Up contains only the following deleted scenes (HD): Cooking with Dr. Hyman (4:17), Ariel (3:55), Nashwah (2:05), Slotting Fees (1:24), and Hippocratic Oath (1:03).

Fed Up Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

But...but...it's...so...yummy! And...so...satisfying. And...so....comforting. It's a shame that man has gone to the moon but can't bake a cake that tastes right but that is also healthy, that computers more powerful than ever before are now built into a pocked-sized phone yet there's no miracle pill to make sure there's room in those pockets for the phone, not just that extra fat on the thigh. Oh well. Man might not be there yet, but Fed Up at least teaches people how to hang on until science creates a tub of ice cream that's equal to a bowl of peas. In all sincerity, though, this is a wonderful Documentary that will either open eyes or reinforce ideas on what it means to be healthy and eat healthy and stay away from the really bad foods. It's not easy, but it will be easier after watching the film in all its heartbreaking sincerity. Anchor Bay's Blu-ray release of Fed Up features quality video and audio. Supplements could have been so much more -- meal plans, "approved food" lists, dietician commentaries -- but are limited to a handful of deleted scenes. Nevertheless, this excellent film comes very highly recommended.