From the very beginning, the film demonized the corporation and it felt like a dark deep black hole from there revealing the terrible things corporations do—as the film points out, they are solely motivated by profit. I made a conscious decision to try and find some parts in the film that portrayed the corporation in somewhat of a more positive optimistic light and wish to share my findings with you all.
There was one commentator near the beginning of the film who stated how he does not use the word “corporation” simply because of all of the negative connotations attached to the word. Instead, he uses the words “business”, “company”, or “business community” while describing corporations as he believes it is a more accurate representation. I’m not sure if this is a glimpse of refreshing optimism or just blind ignorance. Community to me has a positive connotation; however, it is hard to see anything positive about labourers in third world countries being underpaid for the clothes they produce. This commentator intentionally choosing to somewhat ignore the deleterious effects corporations have on people is exemplified in the scene with Michael Moore and Phil Knight the CEO of Nike. Phil Knight confesses to Moore how he has never been to Indonesia before, where his factory is, and does not wish to go there and see the horrid conditions of his workers.
This turning a blind eye to the horrible things corporations do was highlighted when one of the commentators who is a broker spoke about the first thing that came to his mind when 9/11 happened. He stated, “I wonder how much gold is up?” The majority of his clients were in the gold business and saw 9/11 not as one of the greatest tragedies of the century, but as a blessing in disguise. It is somewhat repulsive how people’s minds have been taken over by capitalism and how this drive for profit has overpowered people’s ability to empathize with victims.
It was interesting when the film compared corporations to slave holders. The film explained that slavery in itself is inherently monstrous, but the individuals participating in slavery (the slave owners) may be the greatest, most caring and generous people at heart. This comparison is analogous to the corporation; how CEOS, who are just a part of the corporation, may be the most benevolent people; however, in their institutional role they are monsters because the institutions in themselves are monsters. This part of the film definitely humanized the role of the corporation, for me, and made me take a second look at who exactly is to blame for the demise of corporations’ morality?
