Farenheit 9-11

This afternoon I drove into uptown Minneapolis to catch a late afternoon showing of the new Michael Moore movie. I was very impressed by the film. Yes the film is a very slanted propoganda-documentary, but when has Moore ever denied that?

I believe Moore's strength lies in his ability to combine chilling video clips with poignant music. He is also very adept at connecting events that otherwise appear to have no connection. Nowhere are these strengths more evident than in this movie.

My biggest problem with the film was its fragmentation. He begins with a 20 min. look at how Gore lost the election, proceedes to a 45 minute examination of the Bush-Saudi connection, continues by examining the Afghanistan war for 30 min. (along with its connections to the defense industry), and then finishes with an attack against the administration's Iraq war. Although all these parts are interesting, there is no thread to tie them together. Moore begins by discussing Bin Laden, and ends up on the old standby of Corporate Greed, and the plight of the downtrodden.

I think at times Moore has a tendency to go over the top, but I do believe he is genuine in his crusade, and therefore I respect him. On tonight's Daily Show they showed an interview he did on CBS where the anchor clearly intended to ambush him. However, Moore quickly turned that ambush on its head and confronted the Woman about CBS's supposed lack of journalistic integrity. It was rather funny.