Battling against business as usual

The New Corporation Cast: executives, activists Directors: Jennifer Abbott, Joel Bakan Duration: 1 h 45 m

Billed as “the unfortunately necessary sequel” to the 2003 documentary The Corporation, The New Corporation has something for everyone — except perhaps the one per cent.

The original doc looked at the rise to prominence of corporations in recent history, and how these entities are sometimes treated almost as individuals, even though their behaviour is not one most individuals would choose to emulate.

In The New Corporation, co-directors Jennifer Abbott and Joel Bakan examine how big companies have increasingly tried to brand themselves as good citizens, giving back to the community and helping the environment. But the directors' thesis — and they bring a lot of examples to the table — is that no matter how much executives say or even try to do, corporations will always put money ahead of safety, morality and social responsibility. It's in their nature.

That may sound like a depressing premise, and The New Corporation is indeed full of disheartening statistics. Take the environmental concern showed by former BP CEO Lord John Browne (he left the company in 2007), even as BP's cost-cutting led to the Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2010 that killed 11 workers and poisoned the environment.

The filmmakers describe a 10-point corporate playbook that starts with “present yourself as a friend and ally” and moves on to “don't pay your fair share” (for example, avoid taxes) and “break laws that get in your way.”

We've seen the last in everything from the Volkswagen emission scandal to the Boeing 737 Max crashes.

Underlying these catastrophes is the move to privatization, deregulation or in some cases merely lax regulation by governments.

But if that has you riled up, the film ends on a positive note, showing how protesters that once merely took to the streets are now moving into the corridors of power to push for legislative change from the inside.

Examples here include Kshama Sawant, a socialist elected to Seattle's city council in 2014 on a platform of raising the minimum wage; Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau, who fought against evictions in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis; and New Zealand's Labour Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. There's even praise for also-ran Bernie Sanders.

This good-news-last technique illustrates one of the paradoxes faced by docs that aim to rouse citizen activism. Pitch your tale too bleakly and you risk turning off viewers with a no-hope message. Paint a rosy picture and people may feel absolved of the need to act.

The New Corporation ends, as do many modern documentaries, with a solemn refrain: There is more to be done. ΠΠ•½