As Steven Spielberg once said, “documentaries are the best way to educate an entire generation” (Azevedo, 2013). In the documentary Super Size Me by Morgan Spurlock, the public is informed and shown the dangers of eating fast food every day. Spurlock is followed by a camera for a month as he consumes McDonalds with every meal, exposing him to the unhealthy effects of the lifestyle. Using footage, interviews and statistics, viewers are informed about how processed fast food begins to affect people at a young age. This documentary-style film shapes the viewer's perception through the use of visual and narrative techniques. Morgan Spurlock's film Super Size Me is representative of the idealized version of film known as the documentary style due to its formal properties and structure. At the beginning of the film, the audience sees a group of children singing about turkey, fried chicken, Pizza Hut, and McDonalds. The camera moves unsteadily, making it instantly clear that it is being filmed with a handheld camera. Much like the first scene, doctor's appointments, McDonald's visits, and interviews are all recorded via a "handheld camera [with] live synchronized audio" (Cornell, Lecture #12). Before Spurlock begins his month-long McDonald's-only diet viewers are presented with the reason for the experiment. Its “stance on the subject” of fast food takes into consideration global obesity statistics (Cornell, Lecture #12). Various facts and figures are read to viewers via voiceover narration as they watch several shots of obese men, women and children. The public learns that 100 million people in the United States are overweight or obese, and that one in four America... middle of paper ...... uses visual and narrative techniques. Spurlock is tracked by a handheld camera for a month while he follows a strict "McDiet" in which he only eats and drinks items sold by McDonalds. As a documentary, Super Size Me incorporates many different elements of the style, including filming people in uncontrolled situations, eliminating prejudice, and provoking responses. The film manages to reach a wide range of viewers by informing them of the dangers of regular consumption of fast food.Works CitedAzevedo, Luís. “20 quotes from Stephen Spielberg about cinema.” NP, 2013. Web. December 14, 2013. Cornell, Julian. “Conference No. 12: Cinéma Vérité: documentary as a style.” PowerPoint Presentation.Super Size Me. Dir. Morgan Spurlock. Perf. Morgan Spurlock. Roadside Attractions, 2004.