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BERLIN
- A documentary on the perils of runaway
capitalism that spotlights Wal-Mart screened
at the Berlin Film Festival on Saturday, and
interest among European distributors and
television networks has been strong.
The feature-length documentary focuses on
working conditions at the U.S. retail giant
and argues that the company treats its
employees shabbily in pursuit of maximum
profit.
"Wal-Mart is the poster child for the worst
in corporate behavior," U.S. director Robert
Greenwald said in an interview after his
film, "Wal-Mart:
The High Cost of Low Price",
screened to a large and appreciative
audience.
"But it is not only Wal-Mart, it is these
issues that affect all of us all around the
world."
Wal-Mart, based in Betonville, Arkansas, has
criticized the film by saying it is not an
accurate portrayal of the company.
"Let's be clear about Mr. Greenwald's
intent: it is not to present a fair and
accurate portrayal of Wal-Mart," the
retailer said in a statement last year.
"It is a propaganda video -- pure and simple
-- designed to advance a narrow special
interest agenda."
Greenwald's film, which has sold 110,000
DVDs since November and been shown in a
limited theatrical release in the United
States, was quickly snapped up by
distributors in Britain, Germany and
Australia.
The film, which Greenwald partly
financed, portrays Wal-Mart Stores Inc as a
monster that destroys the fabric of small
towns by killing off small business with
discount prices, and as a firm paying
poverty-level wages without adequate health
cover.
Greenwald, who said he tried unsuccessfully
to interview Wal-Mart executives for his
documentary, shows how Wal-Mart moved into
two small towns in Ohio and Missouri, among
other places, and how family-owned stores
folded after its arrival.
"Wal-Mart is on a rampage across America but
no one is doing anything about it," says
hardware store worker John Faenza in the
film. Greenwald reports that wages and
property values fell when Wal-Mart came to
town.
Images of boarded-up shops accompanied by
haunting Bruce Springsteen songs deliver a
powerful message about the excesses of
capitalism, one which scares many Europeans.
"Wal-Mart is sucking down standards around
the world," the narrator says. Greenwald
includes interviews with ex Wal-Mart
managers and employees detailing poor
treatment of staff.
"Wal-Mart is abusive in ways that other
corporations that are committed to profits
are not," Greenwald told Reuters.
"They have a culture that says it's okay to
do anything as long as it's good for
profits. It's okay not to give employees
health insurance. It's okay to take money
away from communities to build Wal-Marts.
"I don't believe there is any other company
that is as aggressively exploiting people as
Wal-Mart."
Copyright 2006 Reuters Limited
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