Shop 'Til You Drop: The Crisis of Consumerism

In examining the roots of American materialism, filmmaker Gene Brockhoff operates under the assumption that “you are not what you make, you are what you consume.” Shop ‘Til You Drop features interviews along with archival footage, television clips, and advertisements in support of Brockhoff's point. Most of the interviewees—including ordinary citizens, professors, and authors such as Duane Elgin (Voluntary Simplicity) and Cecile Andrews (Slow Is Beautiful)—agree that Americans accumulate more than they need. Brockhoff even ropes in science fiction writer Ray Bradbury, who talks about the good feelings that come from shopping, especially for those who grew up poor. Andrews notes that “in most of human history, having more did make you happier,” but she believes that this is no longer true. Brockhoff takes viewers from the Industrial Revolution to the present, concentrating on the 1950s through the 1970s, when women moved into the workforce, celebrity culture saturated the media, and suburban dwellers worked harder than ever to keep up with the Joneses. Now, of course, they work even longer hours and rack up more debt, leading to a host of social problems. Recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (K. Fennessy)