Buy Now: The Shopping Conspiracy looks at how corporations encouarge people to buy more, through for example creating demand for new clothes to fit in with the latest fast fashion trend; built in obsolescence that means that electronic items fail relatively quickly and can’t be repaired (and these days, there’s a new must-have phone every few months as well, so who wants to keep their old, unfashionable model anyway?) and lies about the carbon footprint of products and companies that make people feel less guilty about getting rid of stuff.
Though it doesn't really tesll us anything new, the film is hard hitting and cleverly made, openly using some of the tricks of marketing to keep you viewing. It really is sickening to see footage of rivers and beaches covered in waste and mind-boggling to see cityscapes overflowing with computer generated images of stuff, both of which really give a visual impression of just how much waste we are producing.
The film interviews several people who used to work in marketing and producing excess stuff for several major corporations, but who have since left their positions. It also interviews people who are sharing solutions to the situation.
Buy Now: The Shopping Conspiracy is available to view on Netflix.
I'll be writing a little more about this film and some of the people featured in it, in my next post on my Crafty Green Poet Substack blog.
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