When first-graders could not identify a picture of Jesus but knew Ronald McDonald, I smelled trouble. When adults flubbed the Pledge of Allegiance, yet recited the Big Mac ingredient mantra unflawed, I felt a twinge of panic.

Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock lambastes America’s addiction to fast food—specifically McDonald’s —in this spell-binding documentary that will empower even the most devoted Big Mac lover to curb his appetite.

On the heels of the legal suit in which two teenage girls sued (and lost) McDonald’s corporation for causing their obesity, Spurlock tests this notion by only eating McDonald’s food for 30 days. His health is monitored weekly by a team of medical professionals who give him the go-ahead with a perfect bill of health at the outset—165 lbs., 168 cholesterol, blood pressure 120/80. The rules are simple: three meals a day, every menu item eaten at least once, and "super sizing" mandated only when asked (he was asked 9 times.).

Spurlock’s humor is the saving grace in what could have been a Michael Moore-ish, heavy-handed skewering of an American institution. The glint in his eye the first time a McD employee says "Would you like to super size that?" is hilarious. Yet the final shot of this scene has our hero vomiting out his car window. Sobering, indeed.

And that is how this compelling documentary keeps our interest. Underlying truly funny bits, there is a terrifying truth that we have become a nation out of control via the media blitz of Happy Meals, Ronald McDonald and the ease of drive-thru windows.

Week by week, Spurlock’s descent into fast food hell is documented. In only the first seven days, he gained nearly 10 lbs. By the third week, his liver turning into a fatty blob, his weight is 202, his cholesterol 225, and his blood pressure an alarming 150/110, Spurlock’s doctors urge him to quit this experiment. Headaches, depression, heart palpitations, and lethargy accompany his final 210-pound weight, as well as a distinct decline in his sexual abilities (humorously verified by his vegan chef girlfriend).

Interspersed with Spurlock’s McDonald’s journey, "Super Size Me" includes countless facts, interviews and colorful graphics to drive the unsettling point home. Only seven items on the McD menu do not contain sugar. School cafeterias sell more French fries and soda than salads. Texas has the most cities on the "fat list." Endless shots of the flabby abdomens and the wide derrieres of addicted Americans who inch closer to death with each quarter-pounder. Shocking, unforgettable filmmaking.

A movie that generated a lot of buzz at Sundance, "Super Size Me" makes it point with the double whammy of humor and hard-hitting facts. Soon after its debut at the festival, McDonald’s announced that it would be eliminating its "super size" in 2004. It denied that the film had any influence on this decision.

Yeah, right…and those "two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun" contain 2 grams of fat.