Some day, people will regard late-20th-century America with
the same mix of perverse fascination and vague nausea that we now feel when
looking at those robber baron palaces in Newport. The Museum
of Fine Arts (465 Huntington Avenue, Boston, 617.267.9300) is
showcasing several documentaries and discussions on consumerism that might
explain why. Consuming Kids
explores the commercialization of childhood and the way marketers
use psychology to persuade children to worship Hannah Montana and anything that
glows, beeps, or contains corn syrup. Objectified
highlights some less disturbing material, investigating the
surprising creativity of the designers who make the mass-produced items we use
every day. Meanwhile, Malls R Us
traces the mall from its beginnings to its newest iterations in
places like Poland and India, where teenagers are only just learning to drown
their adolescent angst in lo mein-fueled Hot Topic shopping sprees. The film
suggests that malls might yet save our disintegrating cities. It doesn’t say
whether that would involve a Dawn of the Dead scenario.
For tickets and a full schedule of screenings and discussions, visit
www.mfa.org.
