Zach LarkinsFAHRENHEIT 9/11
I just got finished watching Fahrenheit 9/11 by Michael Moore. I thought the man was supposed to do documentaries. What I saw was a comedy.
He tries to tell us what George W. might be thinking at any given moment and tries (poorly) to be provocative. The film opens with Bush visiting a school and reading to the kids when he receives word the WTC has been struck by airplanes and the country is under attack. Moore times Bush's response to the situation. Seven minutes. Is Bush afraid because his advisers have left him in the lurch? Is he thinking about fishing on his ranch in Texas? Or maybe he's clever enough to know that if these young kids see the POTUS being rushed out of the building under heavy guard, something really, really bad has happened and he doesn't want to start a blind panic? Maybe he's thinking, "Why didn't Clinton take care of bin Laden when he had the chance?" Moore never mentions those options.
The movie won the People's Choice Award as favourite motion picture, but that doesn't tell us much. Is it their favourite because it is a true documentary? Is it their favourite because everyone likes a good laugh now and then? We don't know. The film did win the Palme d'Or at the 2004 film fest in Cannes for best documentary, but then we all know the French hail Jerry Lewis as the funniest man ever to live too. Maybe Moore has replaced him with this film.
Moore takes cheap shots throughout the film at Bush and like many others, especially in America, considers him a lumbering, knuckle-dragging, mouth breather not fit to hold office. Yet in the film, Moore points out that Bush alone had the wherewithal to contrive a cover-up story for the 9/11 massacre that would keep his Saudi friends safe. So, on one hand Bush is a doofus who can't tie his own shoes and on the other, he's a master planner of deception. Which is it Michael? I don't think he can be both.
No one is perfect and I'm not saying Bush is. But he is clever enough to surround himself with people who know what they're doing and he let's them do it. Perhaps that's why he stayed and read to those kids. He knew his staff was already working on the problem and they might have more insight into it than he could have had at the time. Henry Ford was once testifying at a trial of a friend of his. Asked whether he knew the phone number of the friend, Ford replied, " No. Why should I have to? I've got an assistant to know that for me." Okay, Bush is no Henry Ford either, neither are you nor I, but it seems to me they think along the same lines.
Bush is chastised for spending 42% of his time 'on vacation' in Texas during his first few months in office. I guess Moore never heard of a telephone, fax machine or the internet where Bush could easily have conducted business. If some great event caused the President to be sequestered in Air Force One, does Moore think he's automatically out of touch with the rest of the world?
Moore blasts the FBI and CIA for allowing the bin Laden family to fly out of America when such stalwarts as Hollywood idols were grounded. Oh my God! So and so won't make his/her photo shoot. We're truly in trouble now. Let's tune in to Entertaiment Tonight to get their views of this tragic event. Sheesh. Why would that be such a big deal anyway? Because Moore, to try to prove a point, injects clips from the old Dragnet series to show the cops always ask relatives where they can find the suspect. First of all, Osama was the black sheep of the family and it's pretty well known by now that the rest of the family wanted nothing to do with him. Second, the man breeds like a rabbit so how many relatives does he have and how long would it take to interview them all? Third, what would they say? "Last time I saw him, he was headed for the third cave on the left just over the mountain there."
Moore is popular with the left wing media and left wing believers. It seems he is the only truly unbiased man left on the face of the Earth. Therefore his word should be taken at face value as gospel moreso than even that of Jesus. Give me a break. Eveyone knows that a documentary movie maker can put his/her own spin on things. It is up to us to separate the wheat from from the chaff. Moore doesn't even try to hide his bias. He does some great research and has enough facts and figures behind him so that he can defend his views, but he never truly shows the other side of the coin and his arguments can easily be debated and shot down for the propaganda they seem to be.
I know Fahrenheit 9/11 came out years ago, but I refuse to go spend the money to sit in a theatre where I'm no longer allowed to smoke. So I wait until movies show up on TV (we all know they eventually will). I was under the impression that this was to be a true, serious documentary. Instead, it gave me and my wife the good laugh we have missed for the last little while. Maybe that's the genius of Moore. He can make your sides split from laughter.
He tries to tell us what George W. might be thinking at any given moment and tries (poorly) to be provocative. The film opens with Bush visiting a school and reading to the kids when he receives word the WTC has been struck by airplanes and the country is under attack. Moore times Bush's response to the situation. Seven minutes. Is Bush afraid because his advisers have left him in the lurch? Is he thinking about fishing on his ranch in Texas? Or maybe he's clever enough to know that if these young kids see the POTUS being rushed out of the building under heavy guard, something really, really bad has happened and he doesn't want to start a blind panic? Maybe he's thinking, "Why didn't Clinton take care of bin Laden when he had the chance?" Moore never mentions those options.
The movie won the People's Choice Award as favourite motion picture, but that doesn't tell us much. Is it their favourite because it is a true documentary? Is it their favourite because everyone likes a good laugh now and then? We don't know. The film did win the Palme d'Or at the 2004 film fest in Cannes for best documentary, but then we all know the French hail Jerry Lewis as the funniest man ever to live too. Maybe Moore has replaced him with this film.
Moore takes cheap shots throughout the film at Bush and like many others, especially in America, considers him a lumbering, knuckle-dragging, mouth breather not fit to hold office. Yet in the film, Moore points out that Bush alone had the wherewithal to contrive a cover-up story for the 9/11 massacre that would keep his Saudi friends safe. So, on one hand Bush is a doofus who can't tie his own shoes and on the other, he's a master planner of deception. Which is it Michael? I don't think he can be both.
No one is perfect and I'm not saying Bush is. But he is clever enough to surround himself with people who know what they're doing and he let's them do it. Perhaps that's why he stayed and read to those kids. He knew his staff was already working on the problem and they might have more insight into it than he could have had at the time. Henry Ford was once testifying at a trial of a friend of his. Asked whether he knew the phone number of the friend, Ford replied, " No. Why should I have to? I've got an assistant to know that for me." Okay, Bush is no Henry Ford either, neither are you nor I, but it seems to me they think along the same lines.
Bush is chastised for spending 42% of his time 'on vacation' in Texas during his first few months in office. I guess Moore never heard of a telephone, fax machine or the internet where Bush could easily have conducted business. If some great event caused the President to be sequestered in Air Force One, does Moore think he's automatically out of touch with the rest of the world?
Moore blasts the FBI and CIA for allowing the bin Laden family to fly out of America when such stalwarts as Hollywood idols were grounded. Oh my God! So and so won't make his/her photo shoot. We're truly in trouble now. Let's tune in to Entertaiment Tonight to get their views of this tragic event. Sheesh. Why would that be such a big deal anyway? Because Moore, to try to prove a point, injects clips from the old Dragnet series to show the cops always ask relatives where they can find the suspect. First of all, Osama was the black sheep of the family and it's pretty well known by now that the rest of the family wanted nothing to do with him. Second, the man breeds like a rabbit so how many relatives does he have and how long would it take to interview them all? Third, what would they say? "Last time I saw him, he was headed for the third cave on the left just over the mountain there."
Moore is popular with the left wing media and left wing believers. It seems he is the only truly unbiased man left on the face of the Earth. Therefore his word should be taken at face value as gospel moreso than even that of Jesus. Give me a break. Eveyone knows that a documentary movie maker can put his/her own spin on things. It is up to us to separate the wheat from from the chaff. Moore doesn't even try to hide his bias. He does some great research and has enough facts and figures behind him so that he can defend his views, but he never truly shows the other side of the coin and his arguments can easily be debated and shot down for the propaganda they seem to be.
I know Fahrenheit 9/11 came out years ago, but I refuse to go spend the money to sit in a theatre where I'm no longer allowed to smoke. So I wait until movies show up on TV (we all know they eventually will). I was under the impression that this was to be a true, serious documentary. Instead, it gave me and my wife the good laugh we have missed for the last little while. Maybe that's the genius of Moore. He can make your sides split from laughter.
You criticize Mr. Moore fairly and on the merits of his position. You acknowledge that he does a substantial amount of research, is entertaining and puts his own spin on the facts. That’s exactly what he does and he does it quite well.
Thank you for not calling him “Moby Moore” a silly reference to his weight. That kind of cheap shot validates Mr. Moore; it’s a shame that those sinking to name-calling do not realize that this indicates a dearth of rational argument.
Mr. Moore does go over the top sometimes, but, for example, his documentary on US and Canadian health care is excellent – even handed, totally non-biased? No, but a superb basis for intelligent discourse.
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Thanks for the comment.
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I saw Moore on the Tavis Smiley show one night talking about his movie 'Sicko'. While he made some good points, overall he seemed to be whining that people do not take him for the brilliant artist he thinks he is. I did try to do a blog about that movie and some people took me to task for not liking Moore in general, but couldn't understand how I could possibly agree with him on some items.
Moore does go over the top at times and it might be time for him to rein in his ego a bit. He certainly does cause debate, but it would be nice if he was a bit more impartial, no matter how much he might hate it. Maybe then he could gain more respect from both Liberals and Conservatives.
As for Moore, of course there is some spin. But far less than came from the White House surronding 9/11.
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As for Moore putting spin on his movies, all I said was why not make it a more balanced piece?
And Osama was not the bin Laden who did anything for Bush. That was Osama's father. Even Moore showed that distinction.
Please explain to me how Bush can be such a loser and yet such an evil genius at the same time. I'd love to see your take on this.
I've seen Moores films, and I have to agree that they make Americans look a tad stupid, but hey, if the shoe fits, I say wear it...
LOL
But, he does tend to get on even my nerves sometimes, even though he does present things the general public may not know...
If you're looking for films that just disclose the truth without a spin, try this guy: Alex Jones....
I think he'll suprize you even more...And will annoy you far less than Moore...
Good read buddy...
Take care,
Nick
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Thanks for the tip though. I'll have to check out Jones.
Remember, keep your stick on the ice.
As an American I don't base all my opinion on just one piece of information that I have seen or read & I pay attention. One example for you is in George Bush senior's own book states that it would be a disaster to invade Iraq, that it would throw the middle east into chaos. Seems to me junior should have read his own fathers book. This is just one of many, many pieces of information besides Moore's documentary that I have used to form my opinion of this so called president & his staff. I use deductive reasoning, & iam open minded, I don't just listen to one side to form an opinion. I pay attention & I ALWAYS HAVE ! ! !
I will reply more later, because you have NO CLUE ! !
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Next time you write, please try to refrain from shouting. It makes you look silly.
Thanks for the comment though.
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By biggest beef is that this film won the Palme D'or at Cannes when it premiered in 2004.... a move that, I think, was driven by anti-Americanism, instead of awarding the film with the most merit.
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It was a combination of both mostly (in my opinion).
Kind of like giving friggin 'crash' the best picture award instead of 'brokeback mountain'. The whole homophobia thing played its part, that isn't to say Crash was a bad movie.
For the record I haven't seen crash besides tidbits of it, and honestly, I dont think I'd like seeing the whole thing. It was all very... dramatic. Too dramatic for its own good. Given its good reception though it's obvious a lot of people liked it so who am I to say? (really, I didn't even like any of the LOTR movies).
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You fail to realize, like bradish, some people don't have their views set because of political allegances but because they make up their own mind
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