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FAHRENHEIT 9/11

"Political Infomercial Disguised as a Documentary"

What You Need To Know:

Socialist demagogue Michael Moore’s FAHRENHEIT 9/11 is an adjunct Bush-bashing political infomercial disguised as a documentary. It broad brushes Republicans and Republican controlled corporations as bad and Democrats as good and caring people. The political infomercial systematically takes clips of President George W. Bush out of context, demonizing him with the “omnipresent” voice of narrator Michael Moore. Throughout the movie, Moore grandstands with the continual implication that Moore cares about the plight of Americans (particularly the downtrodden) while Bush trods over them. Moore weaves an eclectic collage of images and interviews ranging from Bush golfing and entertaining a Saudi prince to American soldiers talking about the “rush” of the kill while panning to the obligatory scenes of allegedly innocent Iraqi families being killed and maimed.

Sarcasm and criticism permeate virtually every frame in this humanist, socialist propaganda movie. Also, at least two of Moore’s opening points, including one about the Florida vote in the 2000 presidential election and one about Bush’s alleged ties with the Bin Laden family, have turned out to be false. These call into question the reliability of the rest of FAHRENHEIT 9/11’s arguments.

Content:

(HHH, SoSoSo, PCPCPC, AcapAcapAcap, APAP, Co, Ab, C, LL, VVV, S, N, A, DD, MMM) Very strong liberal, even socialist, humanist political worldview loaded with anti-capitalist and anti-Republican elements; some anti-American elements; some Marxist Communist ideas pitting the rich against the poor, always oppressed, innocent, and even lovable, masses; some brief anti-Christian elements; one positive portrayal of a person of apparent Christian faith who opposes Iraq war; 11 obscenities (including four “f” words) and three light profanities; graphic images of beheadings, dead bodies, and mutilations; no sex scenes other than a brief exchange between U.S. soldier and Iraqi prisoner; brief nudity of wounded boy; alcohol use; smoking and brief drug reference; and, politics of envy, mockery, slander, anti-military attitude, and propaganda filled with personal attacks and distortions that play loose with facts and uses only that footage which supports malicious attacks.

More Detail:

FAHRENHEIT 9/11 was the rage of the Cannes Film Festival in France and is highly touted by political liberals. Although it purports to be a documentary, it is clearly a political infomercial. The single scene that encapsulates the film’s intent is one where a U.S. soldier dressed in camouflage talks into the camera indicating he once was a Republican, but now he is going to be very active within the Democrat Party.

The film is a two hour, relentlessly negative ad, the kind that liberals so often blame the “mean spirited Republicans” for airing.

Arguably, Moore plays the role of a modern Karl Marx, pitting the privileged class (Bush, bin Laden, and big business) against the masses.

So, was Michael Moore ineffective in his effort to demonize President Bush?

Far from it.

He was quite effective, as this infomercial will likely have a significant negative impact on President Bush’s candidacy in the upcoming 2004 elections.

Just how did Mr. Moore accomplish this feat?

He does so in two ways. First, he fine tunes taking Bush’s comments out of context to a whole new art form, the kind ordinarily funded by the National Endowment of the Arts and the various “blame America first” organizations. Second, he mixes truth with slander. Paradoxically, it is not the slander that will have the more powerful impact. It is more likely that the unfavorable truths presented will carry the day in hurting the President. Regardless of one’s political leanings, for example, there is no denying that President Bush has had very strong business ties with the Bin Laden family and the regime in Saudi Arabia for many years. There is also no disputing the fact that the U.S. gave quick passage out of the U.S. immediately following the 9/11 attacks, on orders, as it turns out, by Richard Clark, no fan of President Bush. Even so, dozens of out of context splices connecting serious speeches of President Bush with casual golf outings, after dinner comments, etc., in the movie are full of implied mockery and many punches below the belt having little to do with the real issues being debated.

Perhaps the most powerful message was in terms of what was not said than what was said or even portrayed visually. Conspicuous by its absence was any mention of John Kerry. By avoiding the temptation of promoting Kerry, the political infomercial was successfully cloaked as a “documentary” in spite of the blatant anti-Bush bias of the writer, director, and narrator, Michael Moore.

Had it not been for several reasonably funny phrases interspersed in the film, the sheer negativity might have been too much for even staunch liberal viewers to bear for two long hours.

Mr. Moore succeeded in his effort to paint the President with an ugly stick. There was not a single kind word or phrase said about George Bush in the entire film that this reviewer recalls. However, negative or not, we can expect to see more Moore films of this sort in the future, and perhaps even similar movies from other liberals and radical socialists.

Moore’s movie starts out, however, with two bald-faced lies. First, he says that Al Gore won the vote in Florida in 2000 which gave Bush the election, but studies by some of the most liberal, pro Democratic Party newspapers in the country, including the Washington Post, reported that Bush actually won Florida, no matter how you count the votes. Secondly, as noted above, Moore spends some time focusing on the flights for the Bin Laden family after 9/11, but, recently, former anti-terrorist official Richard Clarke said he okayed the flights, not Bush. Furthermore, contrary to Moore, recent news reports have alleged that the FBI vetted most, if not all, of the family members and even questioned some of them. It should also be noted that, for some time now, the FBI has been working with authorities in Saudi Arabia on anti-terrorist measures, so, if any other Bin Laden family members actually pose a terrorist threat to the United States, which is unlikely, their activities are hopefully noticed.

Of course, Mr. Moore also neglects to mention that one of the most conservative men in the United States, Pat Buchanan, has also expressed disagreement with President Bush’s decision to go to war in Iraq, but at least Buchanan supports victory for the United States and the new Iraqi government against the terrorists and so-called insurgents now that U.S. troops have been employed in that country, though he still sometimes criticizes the political and military methods employed in achieving that victory. We doubt if such nuances are capable of penetrating Mr. Moore’s narrow-minded, shoot-from-the-lip approach to political discourse.

Christians, moderates and conservatives who elect to view this movie will see a painful mix of slander and truth, evoking a myriad of emotions and thoughts, perhaps leading them to vote for a third party candidate, not caring if they “throw away” their votes. The film could even prompt some viewers to run for office themselves. The Bible says, “Iron sharpens iron” and that God works all things for the good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. So rather than curse the man who made this film, all of us, from the pews to the President, have the opportunity to partake in personal and corporate repentance and place our trust in God, not man.

In that light, viewers should be careful when watching documentaries like FAHRENHEIT 9/11, or any TV news program for that matter, especially those which appear to present only one side of an argument.

Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.

What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.

You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.

Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.


Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.

What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.

You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.

Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.