DVD - Hot Coffee

Hot Coffee is director Susan Saladoff's exploration of the world of Tort Reform and the fight against "frivolous" lawsuits. The film is centered on a case from the 1990's, in which an elderly woman successfully sued McDonald's after having severely burned herself after spilling coffee onto herself. The woman won her case, but, because of the way the press handled it, and smear campaigns by McDonalds and the politicians in their pockets, the woman was made out to be a gold digger, suing for something that other's say is really her fault.

Saladoff does a great job at bringing out the information on this, and several other cases in this documentary, and one is left to contemplate how much of the truth we actually get from the press and the corporate spin machine. You also feel like a bit of a fool when you realize the extent of damage that this reform, which was supposed to be good for us, has done. I highly recommend Hot Coffee. It's an incredibly informing piece, and has made me think twice about a lot.