Movie Review: Bowling For Columbine

News Type: Other — Tue Mar 13, 2007 12:00 AM EDT

entertainment, movie, review, michael-moore, sbutki-review, moore, columbine, bowling, bowling-for-columbine

In a nutshell, I think this is a great documentary and Michael Moore is a talented director and editor. My quibble - especially after reading not just the reviews but also sifting through the anti-Moore web sites - is that he plays a little too fast and loose with the facts. And the more factual errors that are made the less credible the rest of the movie is.

I'm talking here about errors/omissions he's copped to - such as implying that Charleton Heston and the NRA went to Flint "soon" after a shooting when it was actually eight months later, at a time when lots of political groups came to town - and not the ones still in dispute.

Overall Moore does a good job of providing an educational, entertaining movie but it's hard to tell when the factual part ends and the fun part begins. He wrestles with a good legitimite question: Why is American society more violent than that of other nations? He shoots down some of the usual theories, using statistics which critics question. The main answer he seems to suggest is that violence is caused by fear generated by the news media. TV news about bloodshed makes people more likely to be violent themselves.

There's one big problem with that theory though - the level of violent crime in America has dropped in recent years at the same time that media coverage of violent crime - especially school shootings - is up. Despite those quibbles, I give this ambitious movie an 8. He may be sloppy, but he's good.

Memorable movie quotes:

******************************************************
Chris Rock: You don't need no gun control. You know what you need? Bullet control. I think all bullets should cost $5000. You know why? If a bullet cost $5000 there'd be no more innocent bystanders.
*******************************************************
Michael Moore: If you were to talk directly to the kids at Columbine or the people in that community, what would you say to them if they were here right now?

Marilyn Manson: I wouldn't say a single word to them, I would listen to what they have to say and that's what no one did.
********************************************************

There is something very wrong when Manson sounds more intelligent in that sound bite than most politicians.

Moore has his share of critics, including this site devoted to criticizing his movies. While documentaries are traditionally made by liberals, three anti-Moore documentaries have been made: Michael Moore Hates America, Fahrenhype 9/11 and *Celsius 41/11: The Temperature at Which the Brain...Begins to Die.*

I might check out those movies sometime but meanwhile the irony is he's laughing all the way to the bank. But it's probably not the bank in the movie where you get the free guns.

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5.6

1.9

{"commentId":582545,"authorDomain":"theinsideofmybrain"}

Matthew MilamDeleted

{"commentId":583059,"authorDomain":"sbutki"}

Scott (Scoop) Butki

I think Moore's genius - but also his achilles heel - is that he wants to make his documentaries entertaining. He will do anything for a laugh even if it means getting a little loose with some of the facts

I just posted a review of a movie, Bus 474 but free of the factual sloppiness of Moore.

Put it this way I'd rather have Moore on the side of liberals than conservatives because he is a master propagandist, as is Fox News. But just as Fox makes dumb moves that give people amm- Fair and
Balanced, My Ass - so does Moore

For a documentary of a completely different type, but fascinating and uplifing, check out Rivers and Tides.

{"commentId":583059,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"sbutki"}

1 vote

#2 - Tue Mar 13, 2007 11:30 AM EDT

{"commentId":584050,"authorDomain":"fscott"}

Frank Scott

Damn, Scott, I'm getting tired of voting for you. You're very productive. :-)

Seriously, another very good review.

{"commentId":584050,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"fscott"}

2 votes

#3 - Tue Mar 13, 2007 8:10 PM EDT

{"commentId":584218,"authorDomain":"sbutki"}

Scott (Scoop) Butki

I'll go to sleep soon, Frank:)

Thanks

{"commentId":584218,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"sbutki"}

1 vote

#4 - Tue Mar 13, 2007 10:25 PM EDT

{"commentId":584529,"authorDomain":"azsky13"}

azsky13

I liked the part where he got a gun for opening an account at a bank. It was so absurd!

{"commentId":584529,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"azsky13"}

1 vote

#5 - Wed Mar 14, 2007 2:27 AM EDT

{"commentId":584556,"authorDomain":"theinsideofmybrain"}

Matthew MilamDeleted

{"commentId":584688,"authorDomain":"sbutki"}

Scott (Scoop) Butki

That's one of the scenes where he's accused of doing some manipulation.
So it's entertaining and memorable but not totally accurate, according to the bank teller and Wikipedia

In March 2003, John Fund reported in a Wall Street Journal diary page that the bank employee who handled Moore's account, Jan Jacobson, claimed that Moore had arranged the transaction weeks in advance, and that customers have "a week to 10 days waiting period" before collecting their guns. [9]

Moore later responded to these criticisms, writing,"Nothing was done out of the ordinary other than to phone ahead and ask permission to let me bring a camera ..." He also states that the background check took less than 10 minutes and he was handed the rifle 5 minutes later. To back up his version of events, he posted out-takes from the documentary. The video shows Jacobson explaining the process to Moore, including that the rifles are held in the bank's vault.[10] The footage in which an employee states that the guns are stored in the bank's vault appears in televised broadcasts of the film.

So to me that begs the question of whether a documentary maker has a responsibility
to let viewers know when he's playing with the facts a bit.

{"commentId":584688,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"sbutki"}

1 vote

#6 - Wed Mar 14, 2007 7:51 AM EDT

{"commentId":586138,"authorDomain":"theinsideofmybrain"}

Matthew MilamDeleted

{"commentId":586549,"authorDomain":"sbutki"}

Scott (Scoop) Butki

Monty Python and comedies don't purport to document the thruth.

If Moore is going to tell the viewers what is and isn't true, as he says he does, shouldn't he
be accurate?

{"commentId":586549,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"sbutki"}

#8 - Thu Mar 15, 2007 12:42 AM EDT

{"commentId":660142,"authorDomain":"sbutki"}

Scott (Scoop) Butki

I really want to see this new documentary that is ABOUT Moore.

{"commentId":660142,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"sbutki"}

#9 - Mon Apr 23, 2007 1:58 PM EDT

{"commentId":688214,"authorDomain":"JohnVon"}

JohnVonPowerhausen

I personally am no fan of Michael Moore, and it's not because of his political opinions. I feel that film makers like Moore set up normal people to fail and ultimately embarass them on the big screen in front of the nation as well as internationally (which is a different story). To me Moore seems to lead people in the direction he wants, cuts, and voices over his opinion to make his point and ultimately forms the viewers opinion for them.

Perhaps in some way that is the appeal of Moore. Maybe people like him because he makes the viewer's mind up for them instead of giving you more then what he wants you to see so viewer could form the opinion.

{"commentId":688214,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"JohnVon"}

1 vote

#10 - Sun May 6, 2007 12:51 PM EDT

{"commentId":688498,"authorDomain":"sbutki"}

Scott (Scoop) Butki

I think you pretty much nailed it.

I think the appeal is that he makes common enemies (often easy targets like people caught off guard a la Borat) look dumb. Which can be fun if you like watching, say, a militia member look crazy.

{"commentId":688498,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"sbutki"}

1 vote

#10.1 - Sun May 6, 2007 4:14 PM EDT

{"commentId":724763,"authorDomain":"sbutki"}

Scott (Scoop) Butki

I'm clipping this

{"commentId":724763,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"sbutki"}

#11 - Tue May 22, 2007 9:23 AM EDT

{"commentId":1480934,"authorDomain":"sbutki"}

Scott (Scoop) Butki

Well, today I showed Sicko as a movie discussion at my church. I'll write up a review
in the next few days. Right now I'm still digesting a few things.
3 Thoughts:
1) National Health Care is so good why were some so quick to use this seed to point out its flaws? Either he left out some important facts or those in that discussion did or, more likely, the truth lay somewhere in between.
2) Speaking of truth, Moore appears to do a better job with this movie in being less
provocative for the sake of being productivity (a habit of his I noted critically here) and being a bit loose and fast with the facts.
3) Overall I thought he was much better with this movie - more thoughtful, less rude,
more intelligent. What did you think of Sicko?

{"commentId":1480934,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"sbutki"}

#12 - Sun Feb 17, 2008 5:26 PM EST

{"commentId":9303834,"authorDomain":"sbutki"}

Scott (Scoop) Butki

Well, here we go again: another Michael Moore movie, another controversy starting already. Expect it to grow before it shrinks.

{"commentId":9303834,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"sbutki"}

#13 - Mon Sep 7, 2009 10:33 PM EDT

{"commentId":10025465,"authorDomain":"sbutki"}

Scott (Scoop) Butki

Great serious piece here about Moore and his catholicism -

{"commentId":10025465,"threadId":"84264","contentId":"611414","authorDomain":"sbutki"}

#14 - Mon Oct 12, 2009 12:48 PM EDT

{"canLink":false,"threadId":"84264","isPrivate":false}

SCOTT (SCOOP) BUTKI

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Movie Review: Bowling For Columbine

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