Studio executives summary / pitch
|
| Michael
Moore takes a running sneer at America's gun culture. |
Short plot
summary |
|
This movie presents
a compelling argument that America has a serious problem with their gun culture.
11,500 deaths a year. The
title uses the irony that the two assassins at the Columbine High School shoot-out
went bowling (a credited sports class) on the morning of their killing spree but
nobody blamed that. Michael
Moore criticizes various bodies, such as K-Mart for selling cheap ammo (used in
the Columbine shootings) and Charlton Heston who is trapped bunny-rabbit-caught-in-the-headlights
style at the end of the piece, as head of the National Rifle Association. |
Rating |
| A
must see movie. Shocking, open mouth-dribble warning in places, disturbing, scenes
of executions, Canadians looking smug. Anger management breathing techniques may
be required at times. Aged Hollywood superstars in wigs alert throughout. |
What our
panel of critics thought |
|
"Michael
Moore is defiantly bulky. Bravi-Sumo!" "I
felt really sorry for Charlton Heston at the end, am I sick in the head?" "Michael
Moore is a cross between a Cheshire cat and a bearded, force fed, dwarf. I do
hope he gets all the sex he wants." "A
deservingly Oscar winning performance, although it presents few answers, just
questions." "I
can't help but think K-Mart got one up on Michael Moore here. Agreeing to ban
ammo sales ostensibly due to the fact that the Columbine kids petitioned them
at their HQ, it makes you wonder if they would have done this had Michael Moore
not been filming a documentary. Someone in a corporate office somewhere has just
written a new chapter in customer relations me thinks." "Unfortunately
Mr Moore does not strip to his underwear in this movie, a missed opportunity for
big man fetishists like myself who like to be whisked off into paroxysms of masterbatitude
given half the chance." |
Please tell me the ending
|
| There
are three main strands, two of which get tied-up at the end. 1)
Two 'We've got K Mart ammo still in us' victims
of the Columbine shooting, petition K Mart's head office. K Mart eventually agree
to stop selling ammo and handguns in 90 days. 2)
Charlton Heston, as president of the NRA, is criticised for speaking at a public
engagement shortly after the Columbine shootings. Moore tricks his way in to see
Heston saying he is a member of the NRA. Heston is then trapped with awkward questions
until he eventually walks off. 3)
Dick Clark is criticised for running a food chain and allegedly not paying his
staff enough. We are told a tragic tale: A boy finds a gun at his Uncle's, he
takes the gun to school and shoots dead a 6 year old girl in class. (The reason
the boy was with his Uncle was that he and his mother had to move from their own
home as she allegedly didn't earn enough at Clark's job to pay the rent.) The
mother had gone to work before the boy got up and didn't see him taking the gun... |
Justify
this movie's existence in the classic strand. From
theVoiceof Reason.com's Veritable Cornucopia |
|
Michael
Moore is currently that 'voice of reason'
in US society that comes along occasionally, risking hatred at home, but saying
things that simply have to be said.
Moore's trick is that he uses irony, and a calm, measured, delivery, which screams
wry. And why not? he's got the goods here. You can almost hear him scream 'Gotcha!'
at the K Mart announcement (I couldn't actually hear it because I was screaming
Gotcha myself). Sometimes people like Michael Moore deserve applause until your
hands go numb, this is one of those times. There
is one point I took issue with, however. At one point Moore criticised the US
media for creating a fear culture because of the amount of gun crime reported
every evening. But if there are 11,500 gun deaths per year then I say it should
be reported - if they didn't I would be the first to suggest a cover up. Can't
wait for the sequel, and possibly some answers. |
What snack should I eat while watching this movie?
|
| Any
K Mart home brand products. |
Could this
movie be improved with more guns'n'shootin? |
|
There is a 30
second, or so, sequence of highly edited actual murders being committed and one
gun in mouth suicide. This really shocks. |
How anti establishment
is this film? |
|
That US public
opinion is determined by the major TV networks which serves to control the masses,
or at least to present them with the main agenda, is a well rehearsed argument
and it is the main feature here. Canada
seems to come out of this quite well. Speaking as a resident of England, guns
are simply not available to the general public over here, so the US problem does
seem to be a local difficulty brought about by the sheer abundance of weaponry. What
is the reason? Is it really that Americans continue to see themselves as having
to defend themselves against the red Indians? Lets hope there is a sequel to discuss
that... |
Would your
pets enjoy this movie? |
|
Gun
dogs are likely to get quite annoyed with Michael Moore who, in any case, doesn't
look much like a walker, although fat dogs will love him for exactly that reason.
As a rule of thumb, dogs who cannot see their own knees because of fat will be
fans of Michael Moore. Cats
would mostly prefer to live in Canada anyway. Buffalo
and hippopotami love nothing better than watching bulky people in movies. This
movie will be a joy to them, although there is a disappointing lack of mud. |
What can I take from this movie to make me a better person?
|
| The
frustrating thing about this movie is that, short of taking to the streets and
attempting to take over the government (you unpatriotic bastards!) there isn't
much you can do about it, especially in these war abroad
times... Hmmm... Give
up your gun? Would it work? The 'I have a gun to protect my family' argument is
a good one, especially if there are 11,500 gun deaths a year... Uhm... |
Estimate number of deaths in this movie. |
|
About 5, three
actually shown, one suicide cut at the moment of impact. |
How much would
you pay for a copy of this movie in goods? |
|
A Michael Moore
Russian doll set. |
Does this movie shock? |
|
Yes. |
Other comments
|
| Superb,
fantastic, do not miss this documentary. Michael
Moore is utterly consummate as the wry hand holder through this contentious subject.
If we ever made a documentary on the subject we would dream of it being half as
good as this one. |
Date of Review |
| June
23, 2003 |