Filmmaker Michael Moore: Renegade or conscience of the millennium?
Penetrating, revealing, bold, controversial and honest all come to mind when we consider the global social commentary of modern filmmaker Michael Moore. Detractors might accuse him of being a 21st century renegade, while his ardent admirers may consider him the conscience of the millennium. For many, he navigates through the unfettered contemporary global society of the digital information age, making powerful artistic and societal statements with his impassioned voice of reason and self-avowed truth. Michael Moore focuses on issues that impact us all, targeting his sights on the subjects of his investigatory documentary films.
Since the turn of the millennium, it’s been Moore’s bold “in your face” investigation, research and documentaries that have thrust him into the media spotlight. He seems driven by a need to expose issues he feels warrant the focus of his knowing director’s eye. His lack of reticence in the selection of subject matter manifests itself into a “no compunctions” approach. Moore brings his sometimes abrasive, brazen and passionate expressions of one who acts as the voice of the contemporary “everyman.”
Michael Moore was born in 1954 in Davison, Michigan, a suburb of the city of Flint, where one of General Motors’ largest manufacturing plants was housed, and where his father and grandfather were employed. An Irish-Catholic, he attended parochial school until he was 14 years old and then transferred to public high school where he joined the Boy Scouts, became an Eagle Scout and created a slide show focusing on environmentally unsound businesses in Flint. He ran for the school board and was elected as the youngest member at age 18. After enrolling briefly at the University of Michigan in Flint, he left higher education to focus on activism as a journalist for the Flint Voice, an alternative weekly newspaper.
Eventually becoming the editor of the Flint Voice, he developed it into a major regional alternative political publication. His success earned him an offer from Mother Jones, the San Francisco-based leftist political journal, and accepted the position of editor in 1986. After a series of disagreements with the publishers and management, he was terminated and moved on to one of Ralph Nader’s organizations. During these early professional experiences his humor, wit and seemingly fearless political commentary took form.
Evolution of a Filmmaker and Social Commentator
Roger & Me, 1989
At age 35, Moore completed his first full-length documentary film Roger and Me (1989), which established his artistic tone. In this film, Moore developed a chronicle of General Motors and how his real hometown of Flint, Michigan, was turned into a virtual ghost town through a series of corporate decisions. His incredulous point of view regarding why GM would undertake this path evolved into a dark comedy in which Moore attempted to meet with GM President Roger Smith. This theatrical film journey includes Ronald Reagan, Miss America, Pat Boone, Bob "Newlywed Game" Eubanks, and TV minister Robert Schuller as they all came to Flint to try to save it from its seemingly hopeless and doomed future. Idealism turned to disillusionment with the American Dream for many of the Baby Boomers, which was embodied in real life by Moore’s father. “Work hard and stay with your company—the company prospers and you prosper” gave way to corporate greed, “work hard, your company prospers, you lose your job.” This personal, life-changing experience for Moore influenced his documentary film style for the following two decades.
Canadian Bacon, NBC’s TV Nation, Downsize This! and Stupid White Men
In Canadian Bacon (1994), Moore paused from his barbed documentaries to create a political satire which provided relief from the murky economic times. That same year, Moore began hosting a satiric news and commentary program for NBC television, TV Nation. His first book Downsize This!: Random Threats of an Unnamed American, was published in 1996. He then followed it with his best seller, Stupid White Men in 2001, in which he focused on the political arena and those who climb to power because of their need to feel superior.
Bowling for Columbine, 2002
In the fall of 2002, Michael Moore released what would become his most noteworthy and recognized film to date, Bowling for Columbine, targeting America’s obsession with guns and violence. The horrific and tragic events of the Columbine High School shootings served as the backdrop for this documentary film. Moore targets his investigation and research on dealing with the availability of guns, and the cultural influence of violent entertainment, fear, bigotry and poverty. His recurrent theme of the powerful political elite as well as the unethical attitudes/behaviors and other social ills serves as a framework for this documentary.
Fahrenheit 9/11, 2004
Fahrenheit 9/11 won the prestigious Palme d’Or, first prize, at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival. The film’s title, more than a subtle nod to the Ray Bradbury futuristic novel of 1953, demonstrates Moore’s connection to the various themes Bradbury incorporated into his own work more than 50 years ago.
The ethical decay and relationship of big business/politics/government, and the loss of idealism resulting in societal disillusionment, Moore drew together leitmotifs. In this award-winning film, this may have seemed the “perfect storm,” in Moore’s documentary of the events leading up to and following the terrorist attacks in New York City on September 11, 2001.
Sicko, 2007
One of the most controversial, contentious and politically charged debates in recent times has been the reform of the health care industry. Michael Moore stirred the debate in 2007 with his documentary film Sicko. For some, the renegade filmmaker gone social commentator leaped expectedly into the fray and weighed-in with his documentary. In his typical style, he used interviews and documentary film footage of Americans denied health care treatment and benefits. These interviews conveyed the attitudes of the giants of the health care corporate structure, who seemed bent on sacrificing essential health services for individuals in an effort to maximize health insurance companies’ already burgeoning profits.
Slacker Uprising, 2008
In an effort to mobilize young voters for the presidential election, and in celebration of 20 years since his last election film, Moore’s Slacker Uprising became a moment when the target shifted slightly away from corporate America. Through his characteristic documentary interviews, television news footage and cinemagraphic style, he tantalized, instigated and stimulated viewers to a targeted action and response. In this case, his ultimate goal was to rally the nation’s youth to vote at the polls and influence the presidential election. It may have worked given the almost 8% rise in participation with voters ages 18-24 between 2000 and 2004.
Capitalism: A Love Story, 2009
It does not take a stretch of the imagination to conceive of Michael Moore taking on Wall Street in his most recent work, Capitalism: A Love Story. Moore’s documentary takes on political frameworks from the Roman Empire to contemporary America and the monolithic Wall Street establishment that is at the core of the economic identity and substance of the United States and world economies. At the epicenter of the global financial markets, Moore illustrates the impact of the corporate Wall Street culture on the average American. The recent developments of certain banks and insurance companies embody the unbridled distribution of wealth to executives while putting stockholders and customers at risk. Moore uses his tongue-in-cheek humor to delve into the relationship between corporate America and politicians.
Conclusion
Timeless themes, cultural phenomena and societal commentary have been woven throughout the films of the controversial Michael Moore. Demonstrating deep personal convictions born of life experiences and values, he is compelled to investigate, research, document and create cinematic art works. These works convey the essence of his passion for social justice, equity and improving global quality of life for all. In doing so, Moore utilizes one of the most effective genres in our digital information age—film.
From creating his Traverse City Film Festival in 2005 as a venue for the best American and foreign independent films, to utilizing his celebrity and artistic acumen as a social commentator, he targets and focuses public awareness and action on remedying egregious problems in the world today.
While some might agree or disagree with Michael Moore, others applaud his social mission. It is only when we have seen his films that we can all answer the question as to whether Michael Moore is truly a renegade or the conscience of our millennium.
References
Deming, Mark (2010). Michael Moore Biography. All Movie Guide.
Westfall, Mike. (2009, February 20). Who is Michael Moore, really? Spero News.
The Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement. (2010, May 5). Youth Voting.
