Morgan Spurlock Dubs "Mac and Me" the Worst Movie Ever Sold
In his 2004 documentary, "Super Size Me," Spurlock filmed himself eating nothing but items from the McDonald's menu for a month. And the results were not pretty: He gained 25 pounds and was well on the road to liver failure. The fast food chain scrambled to rebrand itself.
For his most recent movie, which opens this weekend, Spurlock sets out to expose the rampant practices of product placement and cross-promotional marketing.
Remember E.T. chowing down on Reese's Pieces? That brand saw a meteoric rise in sales following the release of Spielberg's classic. Now just about every blockbuster has a slew of corporate sponsors who, in exchange for promotion, have their brands subtly -- and not so subtly -- worked into the flick.
"If you're going to make a movie that you want to reach a mass audience or to be a blockbuster," said Spurlock, "then you need to tie into these corporate partners that will help promote it."
So, I had to ask him: What was the most ridiculous, most egregious example of product placement he's ever come across? He didn't have to think long. "Mac and Me," he declared.
"It's the worst, worst, worst, worst, worst thing you'll ever see in your entire life ... and it was completely paid for by my good friends at McDonald's."
The movie, which came out in 1988, is infamous among connoisseurs of cinematic schlock, who rank it alongside the likes of "Troll 2" as one of the worst movies ever made. The film is about a freakish-looking alien named MAC (an acronym for "Mysterious Alien Creature") who ventures to earth, befriends a wheelchair-bound lad and discovers a boundless love for McDonald's.
The high point (or low point) of the movie is a staggeringly cheesy five-minute dance sequence in the middle of a McDonald's, featuring an appearance by none other than Ronald McDonald. "It's ridiculous. One of the most ridiculous things I've ever seen in my life," said Spurlock.
read more here
