The documentary is targeting the general American public since it intends to uncover the underlying reason that enables Wal-Mart grow to greater height despite its policy of low prices. The film has succeeded in establishing this effect in its viewers by using several aspects such as visual elements, audio track, written text, testimonies from experts, and quantitative data.
Wal-Mart is one of the very many success stories in America and for it to reach its current state and value, there has to be businesses and people whom it hurt along the way considering the fact that it is a retail store.
The main focus of the film therefore is to expose the extent to which Wal-Mart has defied following the protocol of doing good business in the US and consequently hurt several people without the attention of anyone who can create a difference.
As the film begins, a speech from the Wal-Mart’s president and chief executive officer is played. This speech forms the basis of the entire film as the president, Lee Scot, reiterates that the company has grown to be very important and there are only two things that they have to do: tell the Wal-Mart story and stay the course.
By focusing on the negative things about Wal-Mart, the producer of the film was able to achieve the intended effect to the viewer based on the Wal-Mart story and staying the course. This basically means that Wal-Mart can do any sinister thing in order to stay on its course and covering it with the Wal-Mart story.
With regards to competition, everywhere Wal-Mart has established its stores; small local businesses have been closed down due to lack of opportunities. Obviously they fail to match up Wal-Mart’s competitive edge of low prices.
The film brings out this point using visual elements such as deserted streets with closed businesses that were once well established and began years before the entry of Wal-Mart into that particular market. It also uses testimonies from the local businessmen who were put out of business by Wal-Mart. In addition to the visual elements and the testimonies, the film develops a sound track that creates a moral attitude of sadness in the viewer.
With regards to Wal-Mart’s associates, the focus of the film is on how the company mistreats them and puts them in situations where they have to choose between walking away or putting up with their pathetic work environment. The film even uses testimonies from experts such as former mangers of the company to testify how Wal-Mart steals overtime dues from its associates.
To stay on course, store managers have keep their expenses very low and one of the ways to accomplish this is by stealing overtime dues from its employees. Such a testimony would definitely make the viewer believe that the company employees are mistreated. The look on some of the formers employees who are interviewed is very pathetic, creating the impression that they have nothing to be proud of their time working at Wal-Mart.
Despite the fact that the film has manage to achieve its purpose, there is a lot of biasness in it that can be strongly questioned so as to disapprove some of the things it claims. Some the evidences provided in the film cannot be established to be true or false leaving the viewer to only speculate about them. Visual images of the film are very biased and the testimonies are only from ex-employees.