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Jul. 25th, 2004 08:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
40cakesSo I saw Fahrenheit 9/11 today with mom.
When you take Film Theory I (or whatever equivalent you might have), you learn that these really basic things we take for granted in filmmaking were "discovered" by the early filmmakers. For example, someone had to figure out that if you show an audience a picture of a train station, and then cut to some people inside a train station, your audience will connect that it's inside the same train station they just saw the exterior of. We think that's silly someone had to figure that out, but only because we've been practically reared on films, and take that for granted. Michael Moore knows this. You can fault him for anything based on your own personal political beliefs, but you have to admit, the man knows how to put together a documentary. He doesn't hate America, but he does make his bread and butter from criticizing things. This is another thing you must admit before seeing anything he's made.
One of the guys from moorelies.com mentioned that Michael was all-too-thrilled to show us pictures of burned women and children in Iraq, but didn't show the towers attacked. I don't think this hurt anything. I thought it made the beginning of the film that much more jarring, just to hear the audio of that day. I've seen the towers get attacked and fall. We watched it in class. We watched it when class got out. We watched it for pretty much an entire week. I can't imagine anyone going to see the movie NOT having seen that footage.
I thought the opening credits, showing all the Republicans getting made up was pointless. What was he trying to prove? Just because Moore doesn't even shave doesn't mean anyone who wears makeup when going on national television is fake or vain or has misplaced their priorities.
What the shit was Britney Spears doing in there? Was that to sell tickets, so someone could say "Dude, Britney's in Fahrenheit!" and people would see it just to see what she said? Is making fun of Britney even funny anymore?
Also, when calling Bush into account for mistakes, you can only argue one angle: 1) He's an incompetent twit, and everyone else is using his position to pull strings for themselves, or 2) He's the mastermind behind allowing 9/11 to happen, keeping the noses of himself and his oil buddies clean, and making everyone believe his lies. You can't argue BOTH. (I personally prefer the first argument.)
Other than this, I liked it. It brought together a lot of things that needed to be said. A lot of people won't keep up on the news, but they'll go to the movie theaters to hear it. And frankly, a lot of what was said were things I had already heard.
Michael Moore doesn't hate America. Criticizing something doesn't mean you hate it. You can criticize something because you know it can do much better. Being allowed to criticize our country and our leaders is one of the great things about America! We should exercise that right as often as needed! We're free to debate and discuss!
You know who hates America? People who don't vote. People who allow themselves to be blindly lead. People who believe everything Michael Moore says, without any doubts. People who believe everything George Bush says, without any doubts. People who, given opportunities, stay ignorant. It's not about having a college education; it's about being educated. There are libraries. There are newspapers. There is television. There is the internet. There are books, there are magazines, there are journals. It's about gathering facts and information and deciding what's truth and what's bullshit.
And that's my review. :)
>^..^
When you take Film Theory I (or whatever equivalent you might have), you learn that these really basic things we take for granted in filmmaking were "discovered" by the early filmmakers. For example, someone had to figure out that if you show an audience a picture of a train station, and then cut to some people inside a train station, your audience will connect that it's inside the same train station they just saw the exterior of. We think that's silly someone had to figure that out, but only because we've been practically reared on films, and take that for granted. Michael Moore knows this. You can fault him for anything based on your own personal political beliefs, but you have to admit, the man knows how to put together a documentary. He doesn't hate America, but he does make his bread and butter from criticizing things. This is another thing you must admit before seeing anything he's made.
One of the guys from moorelies.com mentioned that Michael was all-too-thrilled to show us pictures of burned women and children in Iraq, but didn't show the towers attacked. I don't think this hurt anything. I thought it made the beginning of the film that much more jarring, just to hear the audio of that day. I've seen the towers get attacked and fall. We watched it in class. We watched it when class got out. We watched it for pretty much an entire week. I can't imagine anyone going to see the movie NOT having seen that footage.
I thought the opening credits, showing all the Republicans getting made up was pointless. What was he trying to prove? Just because Moore doesn't even shave doesn't mean anyone who wears makeup when going on national television is fake or vain or has misplaced their priorities.
What the shit was Britney Spears doing in there? Was that to sell tickets, so someone could say "Dude, Britney's in Fahrenheit!" and people would see it just to see what she said? Is making fun of Britney even funny anymore?
Also, when calling Bush into account for mistakes, you can only argue one angle: 1) He's an incompetent twit, and everyone else is using his position to pull strings for themselves, or 2) He's the mastermind behind allowing 9/11 to happen, keeping the noses of himself and his oil buddies clean, and making everyone believe his lies. You can't argue BOTH. (I personally prefer the first argument.)
Other than this, I liked it. It brought together a lot of things that needed to be said. A lot of people won't keep up on the news, but they'll go to the movie theaters to hear it. And frankly, a lot of what was said were things I had already heard.
Michael Moore doesn't hate America. Criticizing something doesn't mean you hate it. You can criticize something because you know it can do much better. Being allowed to criticize our country and our leaders is one of the great things about America! We should exercise that right as often as needed! We're free to debate and discuss!
You know who hates America? People who don't vote. People who allow themselves to be blindly lead. People who believe everything Michael Moore says, without any doubts. People who believe everything George Bush says, without any doubts. People who, given opportunities, stay ignorant. It's not about having a college education; it's about being educated. There are libraries. There are newspapers. There is television. There is the internet. There are books, there are magazines, there are journals. It's about gathering facts and information and deciding what's truth and what's bullshit.
And that's my review. :)
>^..^
