The Daily UW | Film review: ‘The True Cost,’ dir. Andrew Morgan
By Mariya Demyashkevich
You may have thought there are four seasons. In “The True Cost,” director Andrew Morgan shows that in the fashion world there are actually 52. With the growing popularity of fast fashion, clothing companies are spitting out new designs each week. You’ve already guessed it by now, but the true cost of today’s fashion industry is incredibly high.
Morgan’s techniques aren’t revolutionary for documentaries. It’s a format we are familiar with down to musical choices: upbeat instrumental stuff for the beginning and songs that create irony when placed next to shots of overconsumption.
The documentary often alternates scenes between textile workers and ultra-glam snapshots of the fashion world. At first blush, this appears like a predictable technique, but its repetition throughout the film effectively imprints the disparity in the viewer’s minds. Cheap labor is absolutely essential to upholding the current system of providing consumers with their constant need for new clothing. There is an intrinsic connection between labor and product, though the stark difference between the creating and receiving ends is rattling. It isn’t often enough that everyday people get to see process and product side by side.
Already, Morgan has been critiqued by Jessica Goldstein, culture editor for ThinkProgress, for not giving viewers enough “new” information. On one hand, Goldstein is completely right in stating that Morgan offers limited solutions for the problems he poses and that he comes at his documentary from a dizzying array of angles. On the other hand, it feels like this is sort of Morgan’s main point: There are solutions, but not enough change. There are problems that should make you feel dizzy.
Morgan’s project could definitely be improved, but there is something genuine in the way he makes his statement. The reality is the waste, pollution, suffering, and death caused by the fashion industry can’t be tied up into a neat package because they are messy issues. It’s not Morgan’s responsibility to tell his viewers everywhere they should and shouldn’t shop, or even what to do about the issues he presents. More people need to be talking about the ethics of fashion, and Morgan gives viewers a hell of a lot to talk about.
Call it ineffective, but here’s a crazy thought: Viewers who care enough will find a way to do something.
It’s refreshing that Morgan comes across strongly because the message about sustainable fashion still hasn’t stuck. Rather, the message to consume is stronger than ever.
“Propaganda is as American as apple pie,” said Dr. Mark Miller, professor of media and culture at NYU, in the documentary.
This is certainly true for the promotion of fast fashion. It’s likely that you’ve been bombarded with a million fast fashion ads online, in print, and throughout Seattle itself. It’s likely you often hear friends boasting about a great deal on cheap clothes, clothes that were made with sweat and will be thrown away without sweating it. (Ever watched a fashion haul video on YouTube?) Morgan shows his viewers how they are being trained at every level to think that this system of production is the norm. He makes the viewers question the current system at its foundations.
The verdict: Don’t expect easy answers from “The True Cost,” but expect to feel like you need to find some, and urgently.
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