Movie Review: The Founder

The movie documentary, The Founder, tells the story of Ray Kroc, a salesman struggling to be successful in business. That is until he meets the McDonald brothers, Mac and Dick. Drawn to the brothers’ business model of fast food, he is given a tour of their restaurant and told all the details of how they put it all together. Ray’s mind starts shifting gears and he sees an opportunity to take them and their company to the next level. Hungry to make something of himself, Ray doesn’t just take a bite out of their burger, he takes measures to own the entire business.

This film reveals so much about human nature. Selfishness, greed, lust, desire, power and corruption. The slyness of evil.

Ray Kroc started out what seemed to be an ambitious man. But the emptiness of his unfulfilled desires led him down a selfish path as he sought to fulfill them at any cost. While he may have fallen prey to greed in the beginning, he was very aware of all his actions and decisions that came as his power and influence grew.

This man knew exactly what he was doing. Aside from being humiliated and disregarded, he is not a victim of evil. As soon as he got the power he desired, he abused it.

He divorced his wife because he lusted after another man’s wife. Knowingly giving his ex-wife, the house and the car, but nothing to own in the company. She did nothing but support him in his endeavors. All she wanted was some time spent with her husband, quality love and he repaid her with a divorce. In my eyes, she’s free. Free of a man that did not respect or value their marriage.

He disrespected the McDonald brothers by making deals without their consent out of selfish ambitions.

Creating more franchises, getting rid of real milk and using a powdered substance for milkshakes. Going into real estate to buy the land so he could have more power over them and be ‘free’ from his contract. Stealing their idea of the golden arches for his own business logo. Even taking their last name. He was blatantly disobedient towards them and didn’t care because he was so focused on acquiring more and more. Recognition, respect, riches. His ego was steadily increasing, and this man became full of greed.

The nature of greed is to want more than what you need. Greed whispers “what I have is not enough” even if you have enough, or more than enough. It’s easy to become greedy when you are ungrateful.

Truth be told, he had no moral reason to divorce his wife, and he didn’t have to betray Dick and Mac to succeed. His choices following his gains expose the dark side of his human nature. Yes, he was ambitious, but he was also desperate, ungrateful and corrupt. Yes, he was successful, but at the expense of stepping on others. The measures Ray took may not look evil because nobody was abused or murdered, but that doesn’t negate the actions and choices he made that were clearly immoral.