Film Review : Bag It!

‘Bag It’ is a film by Suzan Beraza featuring Jeb Berrier. This film is not romance or action movie. Yet, this is kind of documentary film. ‘Bag It’ is a slang that has two meanings (1) to put in a bag; (2) to stop doing something, to quit. For example: If you don’t want to do it anymore, just bag it.

Here, there is a man, Jeb Berrier as the main character. He lives in a small town in Colorado. This story begins from the simple orange plastic bag he finds from the local grocery store. This orange plastic bag contains a cup and a spoon that are also made of plastic. After he gets home, he also finds a plastic bag. However, inside of that plastic bag there are many other folded plastic bags. First, he tries not to think about. But, he considers that later the plastic bags become a serious problem.

When he walks through the alley of the supermarket, he sees that most of products in the shops are covered by plastics. Even, he observes that there are plastic bags are everywhere. He looks people bring plastic bags in their right and left hands. Also, he sees that people sitting in the public places leave their plastic after they eat or drink their food. This condition makes that place looks dirty. Moreover, he finds plastic bags at the trees. Those plastics are hung like leaf. Even, he concludes that they (plastics) were created to be thrown away.

Because the plastics are disposable, there are so many plastics that are thrown away in the wide ground. However, this Jeb Berrier says that although plastics are disposable it does not mean that plastics can be thrown away in everywhere. Many people throw the plastics in beach, river, public places, and bushes. Those plastics float in the river and fly in the air.

Actually, this film gives the information about the advantages of plastics. For instance, plastics are like amazing thing in this world. They are inexpensive, durable, and simple. Berrier also realizes that most of stuffs in his home are made of plastics. For examples, the bottle of medicine, helmet, glasses, toys, etc. He, however, considers if all of the plastics in the shops are thrown away, then, it would load the earth. In fact, there are one million in every minute or five hundred billion plastics used each year.

He, then, observes that many countries such India, Saudi Arabia, China, Hong Kong, South of Australia, Tanzania, Uganda, Ruanda, Kenya, South Africa, and many countries in Europe have banned the use of plastics bag. Moreover, he visits Dublin in Ireland to observe about the use of plastic bag. Once, he goes to a store and then asks to the cashier about plastics bag. The cashier says that if the customers want to use the plastic bag, they have to pay more 25 cents. It is the policy applied in this country. Therefore, if they want to buy something, they have to bring their own bag. Then, he goes to Modbury in England. This country also bans the use of plastic bag in order to save the environment. Also, he visits San Francisco in California. In San Francisco there is dilemma between using paper or plastic. Yet, paper is considered to be more convenient to the environment as it can be recycled. So, many shops use paper as the substitution of plastic bag. Berrier, then, also visits other places in America that also ban the use of plastic bags.

Actually plastic bags are not only dangerous for environment but also for our health.  In this film, Berrier’s wife gives a birth for their first child and Berrier is by her side. When their child grows older, Berrier finds chemical in his son baby bottle that is made of plastics. In fact, those chemical like BPA and Phthalates are dangerous for our health. They can cause diabetes, autism, the risk of heart disease, etc.

From this film, we can get the point of the danger of plastics for our environment and our health. Yet, this film also gives the solution how to minimalize the use of plastics. For instance, he uses his own bag whenever he buys everything. His bag is not plastics bag but bags that can be used more than once. He also persuades us starting today feedback on single use disposable products with less. We can start from ourselves. We have to think outside the bag by recycling comes after reducing and volunteer in your community.

Although this film seems to give the solution too hard to do but actually we can do it starting from ourselves. First of all, we can follow what Berrier does; using the shopping bag that can be used many times. Then, we can persuade our family or friend to realize them about the danger of plastics and to reduce the use of plastics. If we can do those steps, believe that we at least can save our environment.