The Corporation (2003)

Directors:

Mark Achbar
Jennifer Abbott (co-director)

Writers:

Joel Bakan (written by)
Harold Crooks (narration) ...
(more)

Release Date:

4 June 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary | History

Plot:

Documentary that looks at the concept of the corporation throughout recent history up to its present-day dominance.

Plot Keywords:

Corporation | Business | Environmental Activism | Corporate Corruption | Advertising

Awards:

10 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Jane Akre	...	Herself
Ray Anderson	...	Himself
Maude Barlow	...	Herself
Chris Barrett	...	Himself
Carlton Brown	...	Himself
Smedley Darlington Butler	...	Himself - USMC, exposes anti-FDR plot (archive footage)
Noam Chomsky	...	Himself
Víctor Hugo Daza	...	Himself - slain student, Bolivia (archive footage)
Peter Drucker	...	Himself
Samuel Epstein	...	Himself
Milton Friedman	...	Himself
Kathie Lee Gifford	...	Herself (archive footage)
Naomi Klein	...	Herself
Susan E. Linn	...	Herself
Luke McCabe	...	Himself
Mikela J. Mikael	...	Narrator (voice)
Robert Monks	...	Himself
Michael Moore	...	Himself
Jonathan Ressler	...	Himself
Franklin Delano Roosevelt	...	Himself (archive footage)
Vandana Shiva	...	Herself
Steve Wilson	...	Himself
Howard Zinn	...	Himself
Kofi Annan	...	Himself, at the UN (archive footage) (uncredited)
George W. Bush	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Jean Chrétien	...	Himself, with George W. Bush (archive footage) (uncredited)
Winston Churchill	...	Himself, at Potsdam (archive footage) (uncredited)
Mahatma Gandhi	...	Himself, during Salt March (archive footage) (uncredited)
Frank Gifford	...	Himself, behind Kathie Lee (archive footage) (uncredited)
Adolf Hitler	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
King George VI	...	Himself, with Queen Elizabeth (uncredited) (archive footage) (unconfirmed)
Martin Luther King	...	Himself, during March On Washington (archive footage) (uncredited)
V.I. Lenin	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Nelson Mandela	...	Himself, after release, with Winnie (archive footage) (uncredited)
Winnie Mandela	...	Herself, with Nelson (archive footage) (uncredited)
Peter Mansbridge	...	Himself, CBC (voice) (uncredited) (archive footage)
Benito Mussolini	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Knowlton Nash	...	Himself, CBC (voice) (uncredited) (archive footage)
Pope John XXIII	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Joseph Stalin	...	Himself, at Potsdam (archive footage) (uncredited)
Ken Starr	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Martha Stewart	...	Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Dave Thomas	...	Himself, in Wendy's commercial (archive footage) (uncredited)
Harry S. Truman	...	Himself, at Potsdam (archive footage) (uncredited)
Eugene Whelan	...	Himself - Senator, chairs Posilac inquiry (archive footage) (uncredited)

Directed by
Mark Achbar
Jennifer Abbott		(co-director)

Writing credits
Joel Bakan		(written by)
Harold Crooks		(narration) and
Mark Achbar		(narration)

Produced by
Mark Achbar	....	producer
Maureen Levitt	....	consulting producer: Vision TV
Bart Simpson	....	producer

Original Music by
Leonard J. Paul

Cinematography by
Mark Achbar
Rolf Cutts
Jeffrey M. Hoffman		(as Jeff Koffman)
Kirk Tougas

Film Editing by
Jennifer Abbott

Art Direction by
Henry Faber

Production Management
Larry Di Stefano	....	post-production supervisor
Bart Simpson	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Trish Dolman	....	second unit director
Beth Pielert	....	assistant director

Art Department
Henry Faber	....	lead designer

Sound Department
Hennie Britton	....	foley artist
Stephen Cheung	....	dialogue editor
Ian Emberton	....	sound re-recording mixer
Tony Gort	....	sound effects editor
Jeff Henschel	....	sound recordist
Roger Morris	....	adr mixer
David Novack	....	sound re-recording mixer
Chris Ove	....	dialogue recordist
David Raines	....	dialogue pre-mixer
Velcrow Ripper	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Sandi Higgins	....	additional videographer
Jeffrey M. Hoffman	....	director of photography: documentary

Editorial Department
Ness Broom	....	additional editor
Larry Di Stefano	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Sarah Webster	....	music clearances: S.L. Feldman & Associates

Other crew
Scott Challgren	....	outreach
Bienvenido Cruz	....	layout and motion designer
Corinna Hagel	....	research and clearance
Henrieta Isufllari	....	video to film transfer
Lea Moss	....	research and clearance
Paula Sawadsky	....	archival researcher

Thanks
Siobhan Flanagan	....	acknowledgment
Sandi Higgins	....	thanks

Production Companies

• Big Picture Media Corporation

Distributors

• Film West Associates (2003) (Canada) (DVD) (educational)
• Films Transit International (worldwide)
• Madman Entertainment (2005) (Australia) (DVD)
• Mongrel Media (2004) (Canada)
• UPLINK Company (2006) (Japan) (DVD)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (Finland) (TV)
• Zeitgeist Films (2004) (USA)

Other Companies

• Jeremy Walker + Associates  publicity
• Post Modern Sound  post-production sound services
• S.L. Feldman & Associates  music clearances
• Sequence Post  DVD authoring
• Sequence Post  DVD design
• Sequence Post  animation
• Sequence Post  dvd mastering
• Sequence Post  dvd special edition packaging
• Vision TV  funding

Runtime:

145 min | Argentina:150 min (Buenos Aires Festival Internacional de Cine Independiente) | Hong Kong:165 min (Hong Kong International Film Festival)

Country:

Canada

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Netherlands:12 | New Zealand:M | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Brazil:10 | Canada:G (Québec) | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Ontario) | UK:PG | USA:Unrated | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Celebration, Florida, USA

Company:

Big Picture Media Corporation

Trivia:

Sold out its film festival screenings in its native Canadian cities of Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator: 150 years ago, the business corporation was a relatively insignificant institution. Today, it is all-pervasive. Like the Church, the Monarchy and the Communist Party in other times and places, the corporation is today's dominant institution. This documentary examines the nature...

Movie Connections:

References Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media (1992)

Soundtrack:

Bad Apple

A bit overwhelming but compelling, fair and even-handed compared to many such documentaries

Where once we used to shop at our local shop and have bread and milk delivered by the local milkman from the local farms, now we shop in a supermarket that is multinational, eat at fast food restaurants that are everywhere and wear clothes made in the third world by those living in sweatshops. This documentary looks at the Corporation as if it was a person (something that US law says it basically is), charting its development, its character and the effects the concept of profit driven corporations has had on the world we live in.

First of all let me just say that I am fairly liberal in some regards but not to the degree as many of the audience I saw this with, many of whom could not signposted themselves anti-capitalist students if they'd actually carried signs. I should also own up and say that I currently work for an American corporation; in fact one of those who's logo flashes up in the section on the top 50 criminal companies (although I did work for an environmental charity prior to this so that gives you some idea of my muddled politics!). Having read No Logo, Fast Food Nation, seen Michael Moore films and, hey, actually used my own eyes and brain, it came as no surprise to me that the idea of a business that considers no growth to equal failing and must constantly earn more and more to be a bad thing. Nor was I surprised by the sweatshops or pollution that occurs. Neither would any of this be a surprise to the majority of the already tuned-in audience and wisely the film doesn't just rant at us about how terrible things are; instead it takes a fairly compelling look at the wider problems associated with this model. It is consistently interesting, compelling and, sadly, all a bit depressing.

The film's strength is that it never gets personal or preachy. The film allows the CEOs to get a fair chance to present their opinions and it never demonises any of them, the vast majority of them actually come off as very nice guys who seem to genuinely want to be ethical, environmental etc. Not only does this give the film a balanced feel (a refreshing change from Moore's axe-grinding and sermonising) but it also makes the subject more scary – it would be better if the system could be down to careless, evil men but it isn't; it is the system that is the problem and no one person is to blame. The structure of the film jumps around a lot and I'm not sure it entirely works because it is pretty overwhelming although I suppose it was always going to be hard to frame such a large, complex topic – just look at the anti-capitalist protests to get an idea of the multi-issue argument.

The film is not perfect of course and, looking around the audience after the film, it is evident that this film has mostly played to converted rather than winning new converts in the main. Part of this is how overwhelming it is but also the fact that it does run pretty long as well – not a problem once you're into it but perhaps a bit of a turnoff for those not seeking it out. Secondly the lack of answers is also a bit of a problem. I guess I preferred the ending to the alternative of being told to eat mung beans and make our own clothes but it is easy to feel that we just have to accept what we are being told is bad. For me personally this wasn't a massive problem because I do hold a position where I have to work to improve the sustainability of a small part of a big corporation so I left rather hopeful and looking forward to work the next day – but for many viewers I can understand why it feels like a dead end.

Overall though, this is a very good film that allows everyone a fairly balanced crack at the whip even if its agenda and politics are obvious from the start. It avoids demonising, simplifying and making it personal and it is stronger and more engaging as a result. It provides no easy answers but it does provide challenges and plenty to think about with all the talking heads making valid points for all sides and perhaps showing that the answers do lie in the middle – not the extremes of money chasing shareholders or the noisy and brightly dressed street protesters. Regardless of your politics it is worth seeing this film and it deserves to be seen by as wide an audience as lesser documentaries have been (and yes Michael Moore, I'm talking about you).