Fast Food Nation

Synopsis: Don Anderson is the Mickey's food restaurant chain's Marketing Director. He is the inventor of the "Big One" the hamburger best seller of Mickey's. An independent research reports the presence of cow's feces in the Big One. So Don is sent to Cody, Colorado, to verify if the slaughterhouse, main supplier of Mickey's, is efficient as it appears and the production process is regular. During his investigations he discovers the horrible truth behind a simple hamburger; the reality is not like we think it is. Don discovers what the mass production system involves, from the temp workers like Amber, to the exploitation of Mexican irregular immigrants. It is not only the meat that is crushed in the mincing machine, but all our society.
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Director(s): Richard Linklater
Production: Fox Searchlight Pictures
  1 win & 3 nominations.
 
IMDB:
6.3
Metacritic:
64
Rotten Tomatoes:
50%
R
Year:
2006
116 min
$905,718
Website
551 Views


Uh, what about,

"The Big One only gets bigger"?

"Everyone wants a Big One."

I got a big one. Sorry.

How about just, like, "Eat me."

Okay, okay. There's no shortage

of future slogans. Phil, what have you got?

Well, um, same-store sales

are up 8.4% this quarter...

which is just... amazing.

And the increase extends

across every demographic.

It's "tweens," heavy users,

minivan dads, even seniors.

So, clearly, the Big One

is not only a big hit...

it is quickly becoming

the flagship of our brand.

Which we'll be building on, both in

the upcoming second half of our campaign...

and in merchandising.

Terrific. Don, what about

those Little Big Ones?

Well, uh, last week, you know,

we did a pretty extensive focus group...

with some of the kids

from Martin Luther King Elementary.

- Yeah?

- And it went great.

Tested 91% in the top three boxes.

They loved 'em.

What is it now, eight to a bag?

- No, no, no. You're thinking

about the Itty Bittys.

- Oh.

No, no. We figure three Little Big Ones

for each kid's meal...

is gonna work out about right.

But we wanna do a little more

testing on that as well.

- How about Disney?

- No word yet.

Also, the PBS deal

doesn't seem to be happening.

Uh, apparently Burger King and McDonald's

have the Teletubbies all locked up.

F*** 'em.

That's wonderful.

Yeah? You like that?

That's the Barbecue Big One.

Wow. Tastes like it's

right off the grill.

You don't think it needs liquid smoke

or any other kind of flavorings?

No. No, no, no.

I think it's perfect.

- Let's test that.

- Okay. Try this one.

- I don't know.

- Yeah. These Caribbean seasonings

are kind of tricky.

We're calling 'em

Calypso Chicken Tenders.

I think people are gonna

have an expectation for, uh...

maybe a touch of lime.

Oh, lime? Lime's easy.

I just held back on the terpinoline on this

to keep the flavorings subtle.

But I can always go back

and add more.

- Yeah. Why don't you try that?

- I'll keep working on it.

I really, really enjoyed it. You were wonderful.

Yeah, yeah.

Okay. Look, I gotta go.

I'll talk to you later.

Yeah, bye.

Thanks, Louise.

Donny boy. Have a seat.

Thanks for stopping by.

So, what do you think of everything?

It's good, good.

I'm glad to see the Big One doin' so well.

Hmm. Listen, you ever

run into a guy named Harry Rydell...

executive V.P.

out of the Chicago office?

I don't think so.

He works closely with our suppliers.

A little too closely, if you ask me.

What do you mean?

I have a friend that teaches food science

over at A&M- microbiology.

And this semester,

a couple of his grad students...

decided to culture some patties

from a bunch of fast-food chains.

- Mm-hmm.

- Well-

They got ahold of a couple

of Big Ones- frozen patties.

Don't ask me how.

And the fecal coliform counts

were just off the charts.

I'm concerned that this

could be a problem for us.

Do you understand what I'm saying?

Uh- Not exactly.

I'm saying there's sh*t in the meat.

Mm-hmm.

Mmm.

"The drawbridge was down.

The great gate stood wide.

"I entered without challenge...

my own heels making

the only sounds I heard."

- Keep going.

- No.

- It's bedtime.

- Just one more.

- Please.

- No. That's it.

Good night, Stevie.

Hey.

- I think I may have to miss

your history exhibit on Thursday.

- Why?

Well, you know how Daddy has to go

out of town for work every now and then?

- Yeah, but I thought you didn't have to.

- Well, not as much.

But I gotta go to Colorado

for a couple of days.

All right? I'll be home

for the weekend though.

Okay.

I love you guys.

Too much E. coli in stuff. People could get sick.

Is that the one that can kill kids?

I don't know. I don't think so.

I mean,

nobody's gotten sick or anything.

But Jack says too much cow manure

is somehow getting into the meat.

That's disgusting.

That's my new job. Same office-

still dealing with bullshit.

Well, I guess it is a marketing issue after all.

If the kids die

from eating your burgers...

it makes them much harder to sell.

That's right. Marketing 101.

Don't kill the customer.

Bad for repeat business.

Mm-hmm.

Coco?

Coco?

Hi.

No.

I sent that form in. I paid it.

Hey, you tell that coach

and that whole f***ing league...

if he doesn't play,

I'm gonna kick all their asses.

S. Yeah, yeah.

I just did a pickup.

I'll talk to you later.

Gracias.

No.

- S.

- S.

Oh, God! Yeah!

You like the way that feels?

Oh, my gosh!

Oh, my gosh!

That's right, b*tch.

- Do you like it when I pull your hair?

- Yes! Yes, pull my hair!

- That's right, slut.

- I love it when you call me "slut."

Let's go. Stand up.

Yo. Stand up.

Come on. Stand up.

Hey!

Stand up.

What the f*** you doin'?

F***in' people on vacation.

Go.

Hang on a second.

Welcome to Mickeys.

Can I take your order?

Yeah. I'm thinkin' about a Big One.

Okay. Would you like

some large fries with that?

No. No, thanks. Not tonight.

- Our supervalue drink?

- I'll have a chocolate shake and a water.

All right. Would you like

any dessert with that?

- A brownie pie or a turnover?

- No, not tonight.

Okay. Uh, that'll be 4.98.

Okay. Here you go.

So, what's your favorite thing

on the menu?

I like everything.

Well, I know that's not true.

But you did give me

the correct answer.

I was just testing you. I'm actually

a vice president of marketing for Mickeys.

- Really?

- Yeah. It's true.

Just here in town for a couple of days

seein' where the Big Ones come from.

- Here?

- Oh, no, not here.

But at Uni-Globe Meat Packing

just outside of town.

That's where every single Big One patty

in the entire country gets made.

- No way.

- Yeah.

- It's amazing.

- Wow.

Lettuce.

Pickles and cheese.

Special-

I think I burned the meat.

Amber. Order up.

- There you go.

- Okay. Thank you.

- What's your name?

- Amber.

Right. Don Anderson.

- It's nice to meet you.

- You too.

- Maybe I'll see you around.

- All right. I'm always here.

Bye.

Brian, can I get a Coffee Freezer?

Bring it over to the scalding tank.

Amber, hon,

electric is 131 for last month.

Mom, I gotta pay my car insurance.

Well, anything helps.

So how's your day lookin'?

I have band practice after school,

then work at 6:
00.

Well, don't let them

keep you past 10:00.

I'll try to get out of there. Tony's been

pretty cool about letting me out early.

Good.

Hey.

- Hey, Amber.

- Hey, David.

- Hola.

- Hola.

Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Hmm.

And right over here, Don...

we mix our product

with a low-fat product...

from about a half a dozen

other plants.

The liquefied gas in the cylinder...

takes 'em down

to 40 degrees below zero!

Wow. That's a lot of Big Ones.

Yeah. Well, somewhere

in Kansas City...

someone will be eating these

tomorrow night.

...can be used to explain

how accidents happen to other people.

But accidents don't just

happen to other people.

Accident prevention

is each individual's responsibility.

This program is designed to make you

think more about accident causes...

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Eric Schlosser

Eric Matthew Schlosser (born August 17, 1959) is an American journalist and author known for his investigative journalism, such as in his books Fast Food Nation (2001), Reefer Madness (2003), and Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety (2013). more…

All Eric Schlosser scripts | Eric Schlosser Scripts

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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    "Fast Food Nation" Scripts.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 25 Dec. 2024. <https://www.scripts.com/script/fast_food_nation_8038>.

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