'Fahrenheit 9/11' Becomes Political Lightning Rod

[GreenPartyVoter]

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A week before "Fahrenheit 9/11" opens nationally in theaters, Michael Moore's scathing documentary critique of the Bush administration has become a lightning rod for political debate over propaganda, patriotism and censorship.

Lining up behind the film are such Democratic luminaries as ex-New York Gov. Mario Cuomo and former Clinton White House aides Chris Lehane and Mark Fabiani, plus a host of showbiz celebrities and the liberal activists of the anti-Bush group MoveOn.

Rushing to the administration's defense are veteran Republican strategist Sal Russo, along with California conservatives Howard Kaloogian and Melanie Morgan and their group, Move America Forward.

Political fallout from the film has been magnified by the backers' stated intention to shape the U.S. presidential election in November, which is being cast in many quarters as a referendum on President Bush's war on terror and the U.S.-led war in Iraq that toppled Saddam Hussein from power.

http://news1.iwon.com/politics/article/id/410158|politics|06-18-2004::19:26|reuters.html

[jbane]

1. If this movie....

If this movie opens next week at number one over all the summer action films, that will be a significant indicator of the undecided voters leanings. Conservatives won't go no matter what and there are not enough M. Moore suporters to push it to the top.
Watch the box office numbers, that could be a very revealing stat for Novembers outcome.

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. Welcome to DU....Hard

to say how indicative the box office numbers will be.

My hubby isn't a MM fan...really didn't like "Bowling" and doesn't plan to see F9/11, but is certainly voting against Bush this fall.

There may be many other moderates who feel the same way.

[skooooo]

14. I'm not a big MM fan either...

...though I agree with his politics, he comes off as kind of boorish to me. I also found his book (the most recent I geuss) to be unreadable.

[mmonk]

4. my understanding from critics who have seen it

is that any fence sitters or undecideds will move to Kerry if they see it (this from both pro and con critics). Expect heavy attempts at censureship by the right wingers who are more partisan than they ever will be American.

[Timefortruth]

2. One thing the right isn't doing is pointing to specific misrepresentations

or fabrications in the movie. The attacks are against Moore, the bias of the film or the unfairness of it all.

Wonder why?

[bryant69]

5. There is one that Limbaugh trotted out

Something about a meeting with Fred Barnes that appears on camera but apparently claims he never met with Michael Moore. I haven't been over to Moore's website to see if it's been debunked yet.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[supernova]

7. Well, he might be technically correct

in that it may not have been Moore who interviewed him personally. Still, Barnes is in the film, no?

[supernova]

6. Bwaha!

They can dish it out but they can't take it. I'm going to THOROUGHLY enjoy the run of this movie.

[jbane]

8. Do you think...

Do you think that a "dirty tricks" campaign will emerge against M. Moore i.e. bimbo eruptions, people saying he's on drugs, he gives money to terrorists etc?

[GreenPartyVoter]

9. Without a doubt. In fact, I worry for his life and his family's safety.

[jbane]

12. I was thinking.....

I was thinking the same thing, about his safety that is. Another thing that can be counted on is no theatre chain will refuse to show the film. There is no way somebody like Regal Cinemas will just hand over that many customers to a rival. I have to go to the Navy base in Norfolk next weekend. There is a large multiplex theater there. I'll be interested to see if F/911 opens there.

[GreenPartyVoter]

13. Be sure to report back in if it is showing there.

Want to hear about that. :^D

P.S. Are you a reservist?

[jbane]

15. yes, I'm...

yes, I'm a First Class Petty Officer. My rate is Journalist.

[GreenPartyVoter]

17. My dad was a CPO in the Reserves

but they kept closing his units and reassigning him until he had to drive from the middle of the coast of Maine all the way to Lawrence, Massachussetts to do his weekends. At which point he said "Screw this. I've put in my time." and bailed.

Hope you don't get called up to go to Iraq or Afghanistan. :^(

[pinniped]

16. Same MO they tried to use on Richard Clarke.

The only thing those * a$$holes could say was that Clarke wasn't at all the meetings.

[FloridaPat]

18. I did see one repub say the facts in the movie were wrong and

used the airlift of the Saudis to prove his point. He said the movie said the airlift occured during the ban on all aircraft, but that was wrong - it occured after the ban.

You can see why the right doesn't use facts too often. I guess they really don't know what they are.

[StClone]

20. I think you are saying

That the airlifts occurred after 9-11 but before the ban was lifted. Which is fact.

[Champion Jack]

21. The lies are starting

I heard yesterday from a fence-sitter friend of mine that the scene where MM talks to the congressman about enlisting his children is wrong.
My friend said he heard that the guy actually has 2 kids in Iraq, and that if MM hadn't cut you would have seen the guy explain this.
I asked him if he heard this on Faux and he couldn't remember.

[GreenPartyVoter]

22. The guy's cousin is in Iraq, not his kids.

[nostamj]

10. i'm seeing it on THURSDAY

it opens early in NYC.

I am SO EXCITED.

will wear my DU hat and ?!! t-shirt and will have LOTS of promo postcards for the ?W Revue with me.

if there are other DUers attending the 6/24 8pm showing, let me know!

[the Kelly Gang]

11. let them scream to high heaven..it's just great publicity..and every-

body take an under 17 to see it !!!

[StClone]

19. When Paul Harvey was pushing that Clinton Movie

Can't remember the movie name but it had all this crap about Bill offing people and doing drugs. The movie was widely available on tape and there was little call to silence it only that it was bunk.

Which was proven to be the case when the film was dissected.

Moore's film is based on some pretty well developed themes supported by factual accounts. Is that a problem? Yes if you're Bush or his backers.

[immoderate]

23. I believe it was the "Clinton Chronicles"

It was also distributed by Jerry Falwell, who eventually apologized for doing it.

I first saw it when I was at the home of a Repub I knew through business. He started to show it and after a few minutes I said, "Who would be dumb enough to believe this?"

He smiled sheepishly.

I think Moore will do better than the previous target of Move Forward, the CBS Reagan movie that was moved to cable. There they had leverage through sponsors, and the F-CC. Theater owners are more likely to react against attempts at censorship. Also the material is better. James Brolin as Reagan, and a rather clumsy script made the movie less than stellar.

-IMM

[supernova]

24. Theatres respond directly to their paying viewers

not advertisers. So they'll show anything that brings people in. Controversy works in the movie marketplace.

This attempt at censorship won't work.

[immoderate]

25. Total agreement.

-IMM

[greenman3610]

26. in my small republican town...

controversy IS kept out of the theater.
"Saved", for instance, is not being shown here, nor was "bowling for Columbine".
I'll have to drive 20 miles to see f911, and I have no complaint, but
I do think the audience will be somewhat limited by self censoring
theaters.
It will be opening in 500 screens, at least, which had to be
a record for a documentary...but I think it would have to
be on twice as many screens to knock off any of the top
films...
UNLESS the wave of publicity causes a few last minute
changes by large chains of theaters...

[sendero]

27. Exactly...

.... money talks and bullsh*t walks. I'm betting this film is going to be box office big - not huge but big. Few will want to miss out on the action.