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Pom Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold (2010)

Director: Morgan Spurlock

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From Time Out London

Since making ‘Super Size Me’ in 2004, Morgan Spurlock has become a brand. He’s the not-too-serious, stunt doc-maker, the front-of-camera guy who’s happy to bumble his way through the Middle East for ‘Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?’ or live on the minimum wage for ‘30 Days’. He’s the less political Michael Moore. Now he’s taken on the world of product placement and, in doing so, turned his film into a gag. We watch as he builds a budget by selling out to advertisers, such as Mane and Tail, a shampoo, and ‘Pom Wonderful’, a juice company which lends its name to the film’s title. That such companies are willing to get into bed with Spurlock is a hint that his analysis is not too damning, but he manages a robust and amusing reminder of how Hollywood’s tills are topped up by third-party brands and what they get – and we lose – in return. The irony, though, is that Spurlock’s collusion with brands actually takes product placement into even more subtle and devious territory than before.

Author: Dave Calhoun

Time Out London Issue 2147: 13 – 19 October 2011

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Mike said...

Posted on Oct 15 2011 22:13 Time Out have got themselves confused, and some of the listings are under "Pom Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold", and also under "Thte Greatest Movie Ever Sold". In addition to the 3 cinemas above/right, you'll also find it on at Vue Shepherds Bush, and Odeon Panton St. (How's that for a bit of a plug?)

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Mike said...

Posted on Oct 15 2011 22:04 Do I buy into the Morgan brand? I guess I do. Despite it being released in 2004, I still clearly remember many of the scenes in ‘Super Size Me’. It was a great documentary.
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Any regular movie goer’s going to be fairly familiar with product placement, and to my surprise Morgan picked one of the most audacious examples I remember – Iron Man 2 (see my review of that film under the name ‘Mikey’), and how heavily Audi got plugged from start to finish.
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In ‘The Greatest Movie Ever Sold’, Morgan sells out to anyone who’ll buy space in his movie – obviously with the aim of showing just how the movie business works with product placement. Some of the characters and advertisers are way more interesting and amusing than others. Morgan’s humour keeps this movie nicely ticking along, and a lot of his creativity, and remarks to camera, made me laugh out loud. I liked the scene where he was working with the creative team who were coming up with concepts for the posters for the movie – including Morgan (as Jesus) sat at The Last Supper surrounded by various product placement. Recommended, if you like witty documentaries.

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