FAST FOOD NATION

Due to scenes of seriously graphic, gag-riffic grossness, discretion among audience members prone to queasiness is advised when sitting down for this fictionalized adaptation of Eric Schlosser’s non-fiction bestseller.

Directed by Richard Linklater (Before Sunset) the film takes aim at the underbelly of the meat-processing industry in America from three distinct angles: manufacturing, retail sales and corporate. Taking the information in Schlosser’s book, the filmmakers have crafted a somewhat all-over-the-place story about what really goes on in slaughterhouses and fast-food chains, and how the general public is not only unknowingly consuming crap (literally) but feeding the machine that churns out bacteria-laden meat.

The first half of the film, which occasionally features dialogue that sounds like it was penned for an infomercial (watch for sentences starting with “did you know…?”), centers on Don Henderson (Greg Kinnear), a marketing exec for Mickeys – a fast-food chain that bears a striking resemblance to a very well known international burger franchise. Don’s sent to the company’s meat-packing HQ in Colorado to tour the premises and check on the operation, but the more time he spends poking around the more horrified he becomes at what’s really taking place when the hordes of cattle are herded into the massive slaughtering facility.

Don’s path intersects with those of two disillusioned teenage employees (Ashley Johnson, Paul Dano) at a Mickeys franchise. The teens are fed up with their work environment and become quasi-activists when they team with a group of radical college kids intent on freeing the penned-in cattle.

At the same time, illegal Mexican immigrants are being smuggled across the U.S. border, housed in decrepit motels and sold as migrant meat cutters to the Mickeys’ slaughterhouse. Among them are Sylvia (Catalina Sandino Moreno) and Raul (Wilmer Valderrama), whose dreams of life in America quickly melt into the nightmares of living as exploited workers at a giant factory where floors are covered in blood. It ain’t pretty, to say the least.

The story jumps back and forth between these different characters, and throws in random cameos and supporting turns by well-known actors (Ethan Hawke, Bruce Willis, Patricia Arquette and Bobby Cannavale) to punctuate the drama. But none of the three scenarios is terribly compelling or strong, and all suffer from a seeming lack of direction. It felt a bit like the filmmakers knew they wanted to send a clear message about meat, but spread that message thinly enough that it doesn’t resonate too strongly onscreen…save for the final ten minutes or so of the film, which are extremely graphic and will likely have some filmgoers fleeing for the exits. Let’s just say that the documentary footage of the area of the slaughterhouse known as “the kill floor” is something you will never, ever forget seeing.

Performance-wise, the strongest work comes from – surprisingly – sitcom vet Johnson, who once co-starred on Growing Pains, and Maria Full of Grace’s Moreno, whose last notable film tackled another hot-button issue: drug smuggling. Cannavale turns in a wonderfully evil and manipulative performance as a factory manager abusing his position of power, and Kris Kristofferson pops up for a very cryptic scene foreshadowing the gore to come.

I have little doubt that the after-effects of watching Fast Food Nation will mirror those experienced after gorging on a big, greasy fast-food meal: you’ll feel kind of full, a little tired and, eventually, sort of ill. But, in the case of the movie and the intentions of the filmmakers, that could actually be a good thing.