Review of The Corporation (2003) by Jem D — 31 May 2008

Essential viewing for all. Get it, watch it, spread the word and act accordingly.

The film gives a bit of history, describing the inception and development of the Corporation as way of bringing people together for a specific purpose - the building of a bridge or the maintenance of a public service - to its protection in law through being given the same 'human rights' as a person, to its bloating and corruption in the early 20th century into the huge, amoral multi-nationals we know today, indoctrinating our kids, controlling our thoughts, acting for their own benefit alone, so large that they are beyond the power of government to control.

We move through a list of the psychopathic characteristics of corporations, taking in case studies, citing examples, and hearing interviews with people involved on both sides of the corporate fence.

Forget preconceptions of Michael Moore-like emotional manipulation and 'comic' stunts. This is the real thing: Milton Friedman, Naomi Klein, Noam Chomsky et al giving us some very good reasons to think again about the ideas of the economics of growth, capitalism and consumerism and, in a ray of hope at the end of the film, the power of an enraged people to change things for the better.

(And bless the carpet man. A man with a conscience and the courage to try and change things from the top down!).