The Founder

Starring: Michael Keaton, Nick Offerman, John Carroll Lynch, Laura Dern, and Patrick Wilson
Directed by: John Lee Hancock
Screenplay by: Robert D. Siegel
Based on true events

     Ray Kroc (Michael Keaton) is a salesman from Illinois.  It's 1954 and he's trying to sell five-spindle milkshake machines to various fast food restaurants around the country (a new trend at the time).  He constantly is traveling and finds out about a small burger stand in San Bernardino, CA.  Owned by Dick and Mac McDonald (Nick Offerman and John Carroll Lynch respectively), the stand is called McDonald's.  But there aren't any golden arches over the place yet.  It's not a drive in place with car hop service, like Kroc is used to seeing.  Instead, one must physically park their car and exit the vehicle to place an order for their food.  And surprisingly, it's extremely quick; faster than car hop service.  So, Kroc decides to help out with this little operation, and with a lot of persistence and ambition, turns McDonald's into the largest fast food chain in the world.  But it's not as happy an ending as you might think.  You'll just have to see the movie to find out what happens.
     I think there's an element of nostalgia for just about everyone who sees this movie because many people have been to McDonald's a few times or more in their lifetimes, and many have had milkshakes there too.  If this doesn't make you want a milkshake after the movie, I don't know what would.
     This is not a film in which Ray Kroc is portrayed to be the hero by growing the business to its full potential.  In fact, Kroc is portrayed as almost an antihero type character in this film because he basically takes someone's idea, and runs with it to make it his own.  Perhaps the hardest part about the franchising is in the very beginning, when he asks them if he can be the guy in charge of the franchising operation.  The brothers would still be the owners of the corporation, but Kroc would essentially run the whole thing and franchise the hell out of it.
     Kroc seems to be struck mostly by the efficiency of the restaurant.  In one scene in which the brothers are explaining to Kroc how they came up with the idea (through flashback), they train the workers at the restaurant how to do everything as quickly as possible by simulating the kitchen area on a tennis court, drawing everything out in chalk exactly the way it should look on day one.
     This is a movie that seems at the beginning like a story of an ordinary man doing something incredible; building an empire from the ground up.  Instead, it's a story about building an empire from the ground up with the first floor in place already (a floor that Kroc never built).  It turns into a story driven more and more by greed and the possibility of higher profits.  For example, at another point in the film, he finds out about a way to cut costs by introducing instant milkshakes.  Just add water and you get a delicious tasting milkshake without the ice cream, milk, or even needing to keep any of it cold!  It's like you can't taste the difference.
     Overall, this is a fascinating film about a brand we all know about.  Michael Keaton delivers a powerful performance as Ray Kroc.  The story is well executed, leaving you feeling like you've learned something after you leave the theater.  So what is the bottom line about this movie?  I'm loving it!

I give The Founder an A-.

Image Source: Teaser Trailer