Name: Angelica Beatriz L.

Benecen
Course & Section: MMA 201
Subject: TCWN01G
Professor: Jumel G. Estranero

CRITICAL FILM REVIEW OF THE FILM “THE TRUE COST”

I. BACKGROUND OF THE FILM

The true cost is a documentary directed by Andrew Morgan and it is release in 2015. This
film focuses on fast fashion, it addresses several aspects of manufacturing of garment industry –
primarily the life of low-wage workers in developed nations – in their after-effects, including
contamination in rivers and soils, chemical infection, diseases, and death. It also examines
consumerism and mass media using an approach that looks at environmental, social, and
psychological aspects, ultimately linking them to global capitalism. The documentary is a collage
of several interviews with ecologists, garment workers, factory owners, and individuals
organizing fair trade businesses or promoting sustainable production of clothing.
The attention of Morgan has been drawn to the theme after the Savar building collapsed
in 2013, over a thousand employees were overthrown and killed in a commercial building in
Bangladesh, called Rana Plaza. He traveled to 13 countries to gather information and perform
interviews at the start of the project in October of that year. Morgan explore the garment industry
and fast fashion where it connects with consumerism, globalization, capitalism, and oppression
The story of this film is about clothing. The clothes we wear, the manufacturers, and the
impact of the industry on our world. Clothing prices have decreased for decades, and human and
environmental costs have increased dramatically. The True Cost is a groundbreaking
documentary that pulls the curtain behind the untold story and asks us to consider who pays for
our clothes.
The True Cost is an unprecedented project that invites us to an eye-opening tour around the
world and into the lives of many people and the places behind our clothes. It was shot from the
brightest runs to the darkest slums in countries throughout the world, and includes interviews
with the world's leading influence, including Stella McCartney, Livia Firth and Vandana Shiva.

II. BODY
The true cost is a documentary that presents the real happenings in fashion industry in
this generation. Andrew Morgan went to 13 countries, according to him it needed to be a
global film because it is the major global issue that our world face. He said that he does not
have any background in fashion and he never thought that he will make this kind of film.
Morgan believe that the business is the solution in our world.
 According to Morgan, despite the 3 trillion-dollar industry in the manufacture of
garments, work conditions are poor in these countries. As well as having to work in these
conditions and living on low wages, these workers are struggling with their demand for rights,
while Bangladeshi workers in Dhaka are subject to police shots by their employers. Dhaka
employees have to work in hot and chemical environments and buildings that are structurally
unsound. The film shows the events of the collapse of the 2013 Savar building as Rana Plaza
collapsed an eight-story commercial building. Just before that, employees were forced into the
plant, despite a crack in the walls.
Based on the film, it shows how cotton demand in Indian countries has led to the planting
of GM cotton and that the monopoly inherent in their use by seed companies leads to an increase
in the cotton price which results in suicides for those producers who lose their land because they
are unable to pay higher seed prices. GM plants need more pesticides that cause environmental
damage, birth defects that result in Punjab people with mental and physical impairment, and
increased levels of cancer. The film says that the companies that produce pesticides sometimes
produce the same medicines. In contaminated cotton fields in Texas, pesticides cause brain
tumors, similar scenarios occur. A film that shows how the leather tanneries pour chromium into
the Ganges River in Kanpur, India, makes the garment industry the world's second-largest
pollutant.
The film focuses on the Americas, where it examines how the media affects people's
desires, particularly young people, to buy and to create a consumer identity. This is demonstrated
by very high increase worldwide in the consumption of clothing compared to the 1990s. The
average American wastes, however, are 82 lb (37 kg) per year of textiles. The remaining 10%
goes to landfills, such as those in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Only 10% go to thrift shops. Apart from
the local industries' weakening, land and water are contaminated by this constant disposal, as
most garments are made of non-biodegradable materials.
On the other hand, the film showed an organic cotton farmer, eco-fashion activist Livia
Firth and her sustainability-focused consultant, and people managing fair trade clothing
companies such as Stella McCartney, a rights activist from the animal industry, Safia Minney
from People Tree, Redress' Christina Dean, and Vincent Stanley from Patagonia.

III. ANALYSIS
The true cost is a good documentary that will give a lesson to all people that we should learn
to consume the things that we use in our everyday lives. The film shows the real life of people
and the situation that they experience in working in garment industry. It is easy to understand the
opinions and stories of people that they interviewed. The director did a good job in choosing
theme for the documentary because it is a major global issue in our world that all people must be
aware.
Before watching this Documentary, the audience must know that this film is not about the
beautiful things and excitement in Fashion instead, it is the reality of fashion industry and it
demonstrates the dark and grim side of the global mode sequence. The story is about greed and
terror, poverty, and power, it is also about the consumers, mass media, globalization, and
company owners. The true cost is a good documentary because it is an eye opener for all of us
because it shows the reality of Fashion industry. We thought that fashion is just about creativity
and styles, but it has an untold story that people must know. In this film, we can learn to know
the real value and cost of the things that we consume.

IV. CONCLUSION
All people must watch the documentary of “The true cost” because it will show the reality of
fashion industry that affects our world. Clothes are important for us and it gives us happiness and
pleasure, but there are a lot of thing that can be affected because of the greediness of people that
can affect many laborers because of the small wage that give to them. Garment workers are the
one who works diligently to provide us good products while the big fashion companies earn a lot
of profit without thinking of the people that they oppressed. We need to learn to consume the
things that we buy because too much consuming can affect our country, society, and
environment. Fashion companies must also open their eyes for the manufactures who work to
make their products. We all need to learn to appreciate and to learn the real value of the things
that we used in our everyday life. People also need to learn to spend money in buying the things
that we need, and we want. Fashion is a wonderful thing, but we need to know that it can affect
our environment, society, and economy, it can also cause poverty and death for those people who
manufacture clothes. We must be wise in spending our money, we must know who really make
the products that we buy, and we must appreciate them for their hard work. All people must
consider and know who pays the price for our clothing.
References

Analysis Of “The True Cost” Documentary: The Consequences Of Fast Fashion. (2019, Jun 12).
GradesFixer. Retrieved November 6, 2020, from https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-
examples/analysis-of-the-true-cost-documentary-the-consequences-of-fast-fashion/

The True Cost. (2015, May 29). Retrieved November 06, 2020, from
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3162938/

The True Cost. (2020, May 23). Retrieved November 06, 2020, from
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_True_Cost

Watch Now. (n.d.). Retrieved November 06, 2020, from https://truecostmovie.com/about/

Writer, C. (2018, July 02). Interview with Andrew Morgan: The Director of The True Cost.
Retrieved November 06, 2020, from https://fairworldproject.org/interview-with-andrew-
morgan-the-director-of-the-true-cost/