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Fahrenheit 9/11: Review
"This film has the power to change people’s consciousness about the tumultuous state of our world today."
By Sophie Simon-Ortiz
I have never walked out of a movie as speechless and shocked as I did after watching Michael Moore’s latest film, Fahrenheit 9/11, a razor-sharp look at the Bush Administration’s negligence in dealing with the September 11th terrorist attacks, and its highly unpopular decision to invade and occupy Iraq.
In just two hours, Moore and his team pack in an enormous amount of staggering, widely-unknown facts that reveal the extent of big business’ influence on decisions that have already cost thousands of lives. Moore takes his usual in your face, to-the-point style, seen in Bowling for Columbine and Roger and Me even further in Fahrenheit 9/11.
Anyone who is still unsure about the extent of President Bush’s utter stupidity should look no further. Fahrenheit 9/11 is full of chilling clips of the president on his Texas ranch, with candid moments in which he seems to be doing everything but running the country; hunting (badly), cracking jokes (badly), and attempting to answer reporters’ sometimes grilling questions (badly).
One of the most striking parts of the film is the tape of Bush sitting blankly for a whole seven minutes in Florida on the morning of September 11th, after being quietly informed by his Chief of Staff that the Nation was under attack.
I can’t imagine how Moore got a hold of all the footage for the film. The scenes make Bush look so two-faced and irrational you’d think the footage would have been burned long ago.
Moore’s own footage from recent trips to Iraq will leave you speechless and horrified. He shows the images of devastation and suffering caused by our country’s recent “liberation” of Iraq that the mainstream media has failed to show us because of its own corporate ties and acquiescence in the Bush Administration’s propaganda goals.
Along with the horrifying scenes of carnage in the streets of Iraq, Moore shows the dire reality now faced by many military families through the story of a grief-stricken mother in Moore’s hometown of Flint, Michigan, who recently lost her son in Iraq. A huge part of the film weaves in and out of this incredibly moving story, mixing in candid interviews of wary soldiers scathingly questioning their own presence on the ground in Iraq.
Fahrenheit 9/11 also reveals the Administration’s close ties with Saudi Arabian business interests and government officials, including none other than the bin Laden family. I can see why freaked-out Republicans are in damage-control mode about the release of this movie—it makes them (well, and many top Democrats, too) look like greedy, war-mongering, insensitive, elitist liars.
As difficult as this film is to watch (I spent many long moments with my head in my hands out of complete shock), it is the most important movie anyone could see right now. It is as inspiring as it is enraging. Fahrenheit 9/11 shows how critical the situation in Iraq is and just how unnecessary and unjust the war is—in terms of everything from the disproportionate amount of working-class people of color serving in the military to the streams of blatant lies shooting from the mouths of top government officials.
This film has the power to change people’s consciousness about the tumultuous state of our world today. My hope is that as many people as possible can see this movie, because it could undoubtedly sway the fast-approaching election. It is a slap in the face to watch and a good reminder of how much there is to be done if we want to live in a safe, just world.
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