University Assignment: Critical Response on The Shock Doctrine

This report provides a critical response to the documentary 'The Shock Doctrine,' examining its core arguments about disaster capitalism and its impact on globalization. The essay begins with an introduction to the film, directed by Mat Whitecross and Michael Winterbottom, and its basis in Naomi Klein's book of the same name, which presents a Marxist perspective on the rise of free-market capitalism. The narrative summarizes the film's exploration of how economic restructuring and neoliberal policies, often associated with Milton Friedman and the Chicago School of Economics, have exploited vulnerable populations through case studies such as Chile, Argentina, and Russia. The analysis highlights the film's use of historical footage and its success in conveying its message, while also acknowledging the broad scope of the topic. The response emphasizes the film's relevance in an era where state atrocities are normalized and the fragility of capitalism is exposed. The conclusion calls for collective action to challenge the dominance of a system that prioritizes profit over human well-being.

Running head: GLOBALISATION
GLOBALISATION IN ‘THE SHOCK DOCTRINE’
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

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Introduction
The film reviewed in this essay is called ‘The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster
Capitalism’, a documentary directed by Mat Whitecross and Michael Winterbottom. The
documentary presents the audience with a socio-economic perspective on the rise and advent
of free market Capitalism (Eaton, Lewis & Cooke, 2009). The film tries to construct a
coherent historiography of capitalism, concluding that capitalism is a form of economic
terrorism performed by the bureaucrats and state militants. Much of the material of the film in
its ideological formulation is taken from the book of the same name by Naomi Klein (Klein,
2007), and the film goes back to various lectures presented by Naomi Klein herself in
between the case studies. The film argues that disaster capitalism monetises on people’s
losses and traumas at the time of a socioeconomic disaster (Eaton, Lewis & Cooke, 2009).
This is what Naomi Klein calls, after economist Milton Friedman, The Shock Therapy (Klein,
2007). The film takes a Marxist stand and shows how this form of capitalism has exploited
the poor through case studies like Chile, Argentina, USA, England, Russia, Afghanistan and
Iraq. This essay would comment and build on the filmmaker’s points and would ultimately
try to conclude on the fragility of capitalism that the film portrays.
Summary
The narrative begins with the numbing psychological experiments performed by the
CIA and the subsequent release of Kubark Manual, and the parallel experiment of Chicago
School of Economists to spread free market capitalism on the country of Chile. Then the film
takes us on a global geopolitical Tour de France and chronologically shows the consequences
of capitalism on the world’s poor, commenting on atrocities performed by Pinochet’s
government over its citizens. At the centre of this is the figure of the controversial economist
Milton Friedman who took a significant role in the spread of free market capitalism, who was
involved with Pinochet government in Chile as well as Regan government in the US. The

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film, much like the book, associates the economic restructuring of countries as Chile,
Argentina and even Russia with the subsequent military coups in these countries. The
filmmaker points out how the neoliberal policies preached by Friedman became instrumental
in the hands of the already powerful to oppress and exploit the poor.
Analysis
The film tries to visually represent the shock, by footages of war from Moscow and
Chile to Baghdad and some of them are quite rare. It tries to shed light on the darker corners
of international historiography, and succeeds to drive the message through. The argument is
presented in successive episodes, and the Marxist bias in this film is well justified in the
course of the film. In doing so, the film, or rather the content of the film, is well researched.
The widespread capitalism and the banality of evil in the age of the global capital is a much
debated issue in the world of academia, and the film adds to the repository of knowledge.
However this is too broad a topic for an hour and a half long documentary, and the film
leaves the audience wanting more.
Response
This film is only too relevant in an age where state atrocities are normalized through
media and the multibillionaire oligarchs take the central stage in determining global policies.
The film attempts to debug the capitalist daydream prophesied by free market capitalism
(Bremmer, 2010) that there will be flow of money and everyone will be able to participate
and consume the goods produced in the global free market. It shows how by upholding this
very doctrine, the rich have become richer at the expense of the life of the poor. These
classical liberal policies stated by Friedman are therefore only destructive forces upon the
world societies (Friedman, Hughes & Saouma, 2016), finally manifesting in the privatization
of the army by the Bush government. This capitalism is fragile, and brings about only loss
and war in the long run.

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Conclusion
The capitalist world is run by oil economy, and USA only wanted to sustain its power
over the global economy when it strategized the ‘A-Day’ in Baghdad. But the power should
be to the people to dissent, and take to the street, before it’s too late. The fragile state of
capitalism banks on the yet more fragile states of the people who have suffered physical loss
or psychological trauma, and if the people become united, they can trade this capitalism in
favour of an economically equal nation-state.

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References
Bremmer, I. (2010). Article Commentary: The End of the Free Market: Who wins the war
between States and Corporations?. European View, 9(2), 249-252.
Eaton, A., Lewis, A. and Cooke, A. (Producer), & Winterbottom, M. and Whitecross, M
(Director). (2009). The Shock Doctrine [Motion Picture]. USA: Sundance Selects
Friedman, H. L., Hughes, J. S., & Saouma, R. (2016). Implications of biased reporting:
conservative and liberal accounting policies in oligopolies. Review of Accounting
Studies, 21(1), 251-279.
Klein, N. (2007). The shock doctrine: The rise of disaster capitalism. Macmillan.