Produced, written and directed by Michael Moore.
In this day and age it doesn’t get much controversial than a Michael Moore film. His latest romp is not aimed for the left or the right of those in the political spectrum; it’s for those in the middle. Many will go to this film because they hate George Bush. They would praise it even if it were terrible. And there are those who will never see the film and still proclaim how it is full of lies. As in all documentaries, the truth is somewhere in the middle.
The film opens with Moore recalling the 2000 election as if it were all a dream. He quickly goes into covering the early months of Bush’s term, including the staggering fact that Bush was on vacation nearly forty-five percent of the time during his first eight months.
There are no images of planes slamming into the World Trade Center on September 11th. Instead we have a black screen with a short audio montage of the events. Followed by images of the aftermath in New York City. Soon after we see what is perhaps the most powerful moment in the film. On the morning of 9/11 Bush was in a Florida elementary school. After learning of the first plane striking the towers, Bush decided to continue with his photo-op. During that time Bush is told of the second plane hitting the tower. For the next seven minutes Bush just sits there, looking like a deer in headlights. He doesn’t excuse himself to find out what is going on. He doesn’t excuse himself for the safety of the children around him, as he might have very well been a target on 9/11. He just sits there as his aids look on in horror.
The first half of the film is very powerful stuff. Ties are drawn between the Bin Ladens, the Saudis and the Bush family. Money is seen as a huge factor in decisions that should have been made more ethically. The second half of the film deals with how Bush and his team used the fear of terrorism to full an unneeded war on Iraq. While the second half isn’t as interesting, it’s just as powerful. For the first time (for me at least) we hear from troops inside Iraq who question if they should be there, hoping and praying that they’re doing the right thing. We follow a mother from Moore’s hometown of Flint, Michigan, who lost her son in Iraq. She reads the last letter he wrote, calling Bush a fool and hoping he doesn’t get re-elected. All in all, it’s very moving stuff.
This is a much more controlled work from Moore than his films, Roger and Me and Bowling for Columbine. In those films Moore was trying to find answers to big problems, doing so by taking social issues and playing a kind of intellectual connect the dots. With 9/11 there is much more straight fact telling. Moore is on screen for only around fifteen or twenty minutes, a huge difference from his other works.
As stated before, there are those who will call Moore a liar with an agenda. Those are people who simply do not understand the documentary format. Robert Flaherty, the father of the documentary cinema movement, staged nearly every shot in every film he did. When a movement starts like that, the viewer should always be on their toes. Documentaries are not meant to be taking as 100% pure truth. They should however, bring about discussion of the issues. And there has never been more need for discussion of the films presented in this film.
I sat in the theater today with a wider audience than I ever thought I would see. There were young 20-somethings and there were many elderly people as well. There were blacks and there were whites. There were more than a few times I started to cry. There were times I turned my face from the screen. Naturally, there were times I laughed. But the emotions I left most when watching this film were dread and anger at my government who has seemingly acted so wrong. Anger at the senators who admit they rarely read the bills they pass in Congress. The film ended to a huge roar of applause. It was very moving and something I will not soon forget.
I wish everyone would see this film before they comment on it, but that won’t happen. It’s clear the right wing believes this film could damage them and yet, few have witnessed the film they attack. This is a powerful film. And it could be an important film. Go into it with an open mind, but still question what you see. Draw your own conclusions, do not simple take Moore’s.
Grade A+
Written by David Bohnert