A new film that purports to be a documentary expose of Wal-Mart opens with grainy video footage of former employees complaining about corporate hiring and marketing policies that appear to be in violation of this country's employment and anti-monopoly laws. For the first fifteen minutes or so we're teased into thinking that we're getting an insider's perspective on a company that may be our biggest national retailer, a purchasing, hiring and marketing octopus that is making a big impact on the economic life of the country and not just the lives of its employees and customers.
At some point we expect to have a Michael Moore, Marc Levin, Ed Bradley or Ted Koppel step in and guide us through the story of one of the biggest corporate leviathans since the rise of big auto in the thirties or the corporate trusts fought by Teddy Roosevelt at the turn of the last century. Sadly this never happens. Instead it's as if director/producer Robert Greenwald invited us over to his house and just left his lap top running in the living room spooling out virtually unedited cries of woe from former Wal-Mart "associates" and disgruntled neighbors and business competitors. The supposed film takes detours into Wal-Mart operations in Germany, Latin America and China, but again there's no host to give us an overview of the Wal-Mart story.
Whatever you say about Michael Moore, the jolly crusader leaves you no doubt about the nature of the enemy —  who he thinks is responsible for corporate crimes, school violence or possible illegal invasions of other countries. In the world of the Greenwald team's 'Un" documentary we get no larger view; Wal-Mart, its CEO and owners are viewed merely as cartoon figures, there's no academic or third party perspective to help us shape our perceptions of a company the filmmakers insist is worse than Scrooge.   Â
A year ago I had high praise for the Greenwald team's expose of the Bush Administration's obfuscation on the causes of our invasion of Iraq. Uncovered: The Iraq War performed a vital service by compiling the most compelling arguments from twenty-five foreign policy and national security advisors. It filled a gap left by much of the mainstream media. While the Wal-Mart story cries out for a similar thorough going expose, Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price isn't so much a film but the raw materials from which a film has yet to be assembled. Filmmakers (and that's what Greenwald claims to be ) can't just abandon all the accepted rules of traditional journalism just because God is on their side.
Anybody wanting to view Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price can go to the website, www.walmartmovie.com, order a DVD or get their media press kit. If you want to support the Balboa Theatre, consult our pages for other good programs playing there.
Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price open Nov. 25 at the Balboa Theater, 3630 Balboa St. in San Francisco. Call (415) 221-8184; surf www.balboamovies.com.