Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price
by Robert Greenwald
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DVD details
Director: Robert GreenwaldAudio: Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Full length, Letterboxed, NTSC, Widescreen
Running Time: 95 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-11-15
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Brave New Films
DVD Reviews of Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price
DVD Review: A Film Every American Needs to See!
Summary: 4 Stars
I had heard a lot of bad stories regarding Wal-Mart even before watching this film so I wasn't really shocked by a lot of the information contained in this film. For example I have known for quite some time that Wal-Mart shuns American made products and that commercial property values plummet when Wal-Mart makes its public that they will be building a store in a particular community. I was also aware of the low wages and the keeping employees at part time so they cant qualify for certain benefits like medical insurance. With that being said I was still in a state of disgust and disbelief after watching this film.
Wal-Mart is basically the epitome of the evil corporation who puts profits over EVERYTHING else including the well being of their employees and the safety of their customers. While this film is not perfect in the presentation of its argument, it does a good enough job for people to get the point and that point is that Wal-Mart is greedy, negligent, tyrannical, exploitative, and corrupt and will do whatever it can to increase profits. This is a corporation that cares only about one thing and one thing only and that is its bottom line sales wise.
The US government is supposed to stop monopolies from existing yet everywhere we look today we see mega corporations who absolutely dominate their respective markets. Wal-Mart is the very essence of a monopoly as not only do they dominate their respective market, they try and squash any competition that exists even if its some small, family owned store, that poses no threat whatsoever to Wal-Marts total sales. The fact that this is a company that basically refuses to sell American made products just makes our governments non involvement that much more pathetic.
I for one have NEVER shopped at Wal-Mart. That's right, I have never spent a single penny in a Wal-Mart store. I have been inside a Wal-Mart a couple of times but I myself have never purchased anything. Initially my not shopping at Wal-Mart had absolutely nothing to do with any of this, it was simply a store that I had no interest in whatsoever. Now that I understand Wal-Marts true nature, I wont even step foot in a Wal-Mart store. I don't care if they start selling HDTV's for 1 penny each. I am proud of the fact that I have never shopped there and that is something that I will stand by until the day I die or at the very least until they implement some very serious changes to their way of practicing business. My entire family now actively seeks out American made products and we also make it a point to give at least some of our business to the "smaller companies" out there. That may sound disingenuous coming from someone who shops at Amazon but its 100% true. Besides, Amazon employs a system that actually helps some of the smaller companies out there as lets face it, some of them would not exist at all if it weren't for Amazon Marketplace.
I wound up giving this film a 4 star rating instead of a 5 star rating simply because this film gets a little sloppy at times in regards to its presentation of data, or in some cases its lack of data. With that being said this documentary does a great job getting its overall message across and ultimately its a s film that every single American should see.
The Bottom line - People really need to start taking an active interest in who they are giving their money too. Price simply cannot be the bottom line in regards to where we spend our money as there are far more important matters at stake here than just saving a few extra dollars. Wal-Mart is a company that basically stands opposed to the very idea of a free market. In fact certain aspects of Wal-Marts business practices are nothing short of criminal and the fact that the US justice dept hasn't gotten involved yet is a testament to just how much lobbying power Wal-Mart has and just how corrupt our own government has become.
Watch this film and just say no to Wal-Mart!
4 Stars!!
DVD Review: Doing my part to help create an accurate rating for this film
Summary: 1 Stars
This review retreads many of the same points that I have seen other reviewers already make, and which I whole-heartedly agree with. It is too easy for people to be duped by the selective half-truths (and even lies) presented by films like these, and this film needs more 1-star reviews to help get the word out.
1. Statistics are presented without context. For example: Walmart employees on public assistance (including but perhaps not limited to Medicaid and state equivalent programs): 4,000 in the state of Alabama - but is that 0.25% of Walmart employees or 95% of Walmart employees? 0.25% would point to a problem with individual employees, 95% would point to a problem with Walmart's compensation practices. And that seems like such an obvious thing to point out in making an argument against Walmart, that since the filmmakers did not point it out, it actually achieves the opposite effect and leads me to conclude that the percentage must be very small. Even so, how does that compare to other big box stores like Home Depot, Best Buy, Target, Kmart, and Sears? As others pointed out, how many would be on welfare in addition to government health programs if not working at Walmart?
2. The film literally accuses Walmart for raping women in its parking lots. When you boil down the films argument to a clear sentence, the absurdity becomes clear. What is insidious about the film is that it is so easy to accept the segment about the rape, because the little things are easy to agree with: people SHOULD be watching security cameras that are in the parking lot, human life IS more important than preventing shoplifting, and so the disparity between cameras inside the store and outside the store DOES seem grossly unfortunate in this circumstance - but when you take a step back and look at the claim, you realize that this unfortunate situation could happen (and has) in any parking lot, and there is nothing about Walmart's practices or existence in particular that made this rape happen, and if there is, the film failed to establish the connection. To summarize and repeat - this film accuses Walmart of causing the rape of a woman. How can you give any credence to a film that does this without even trying to present any evidence?
3. The film tries to establish that Walmart working conditions in China are terrible. And they are. But the film interviews a Chinese woman who explains that it is the best job she can get. So Walmart actually provides the best jobs in China, according to their interviewee, even if they are terrible by our standards. That damages the films point, and its credibility, since it was presented as an anti-walmart argument. At least the filmmakers were honest enough not to cut that comment or mistranslate it.
4. There is no time, not even lip service, not even a call to action, given to the point that CONSUMERS who shop at walmart are to blame for any problems that Walmart perpetrates. The South Park episode on Walmart actually achieves better at this then does this film. Ironically, it does show commercials from the old days when Walmart took pride in "Made in the USA", but rather than pointing out that consumers by their purchasing actions drove Walmart away from that patriotic pride to Chinese manufacturing, the film instead disingenuously uses those commercials to make it seem like Walmart was lying about "Made in the USA".
5. The film discusses the local government failures, but puts the blame on Walmart instead of the local government or the people who elected them. Including the $10,000 bribe to a local government official in Minnesota to overlook out-of-code signage. (Keep watching through the credits to see that)
6. Healthcare - why must Walmart provide full healthcare coverage but not ma and pa hardware stores?
7. H&H Hardware - it turns out that H&H hardware closed three months before Walmart opened, that no other businesses in Middlefield, OH actually closed after Walmart opened, and that the hardware store was bought by a new owner, after Walmart opened, who turned it into a thriving business. So - the film just plain lies to us to make a point. That's just plain despicable.
This is a bad movie. Watch it with eyes wide open and make it your duty to help your friends understand why they must be skeptical about this films claims.
DVD Review: When will this pestilence be checked?
Summary: 5 Stars
After viewing this DVD I have just one question. When will the feds force this company out of business? Wal-Mart is a blight on humanity.DVD Review: Excellent
Summary: 5 Stars
Wal-Mart employees are being exploited, but not as badly as the Chinese. Don't buy anything made in China! Wal-Mart stores have destroyed local mom-n-pop stores; and not just one mom-n-pop per city/town, but several! They take good paying jobs away from the hard working and then give them the pitiful job at their huge stores.DVD Review: Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price review
Summary: 3 Stars
I haven't watched the film yet but I am waiting for a good time to watch it.
Description of Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price
Everyone has seen Wal-Mart's lavish television commercials, but have you ever wondered why Wal-Mart spends so much money trying to convince you it cares about your family, your community, and even its own employees? What is it hiding?WAL-MART: The High Cost of Low Price takes you behind the glitz and into the real lives of workers and their families, business owners and their communities, in an extraordinary journey that will challenge the way you think, feel... and shop.
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