Let
me first say that I don’t watch documentaries. They go against my belief of
what a movie should be. That’s not to say that documentaries are bad, or that I
advocate against them, it’s just that I value entertainment more than anything
when it comes to movies and documentaries fail miserably to entertain because
they are not even trying to, they are trying to inform you. That being said, I
have watched a few docs here and there and I can appreciate when a good one
comes a long even if I don’t enjoy it myself.
We
all remember back when “The Dark Knight Rises” was coming out and everyone was
so excited about it and then… All it takes is one person with a disturbed mind
to destroy lives and make people live in fear. Then there was the Sandy Hook massacre.
I keep thinking of the parents that had to open their child’s Christmas
presents. I know that both incidents were terrible but for obvious reasons the Batman
shooting in Colorado hits a little closer to home. What could we have done to
stop them? Should we have taken away every gun from everyone? Should we have
given guns to the teachers of Sandy Hook? Should we have made ushers at movie
theaters carry special “Regal” AK-47s? I won’t even pretend to know what the
correct answer is but I do know what my beliefs are. Before I give my opinion
however I think what Michael Moore has to say on the matter is very
interesting.
“Bowling”
doesn’t exactly solve much with its commentary on gun ownership and massacres but
it is a great study on some of the minds working to defend each side of the
argument. For example there is a sequence in the film that shows many people
trying to ponder the reason behind the shooting in Columbine, and how they had
the balls to come up with an answer as ridiculous and facepalm worthy as
Marilyn Manson, who makes an appearance in the film and makes a good point
about influence “…the president is shooting bombs overseas, yet I’m a bad guy
because I sing some rock and roll songs. And who is the bigger influence; the president
or Marilyn Manson? I’d like to think me, but I’m going to go with the
president.” If you think about it he is right on more than one level. Why don’t
Americans care if people in other countries die but when a US citizen gets
shot, their face is on your television for weeks?
Another
big figure that makes an appearance in the film is the great actor Charlton
Heston. Sure he is a magnificent actor but president of the NRA? I get that
there are people who defend our right to own guns as stated in the U.S
Constitution, but when people are so fascinated by guns that they want them for
more than protecting their home and hunting, that’s where I call bullshit. A
while ago I went to a shooting range where they have trapshooting to look for a
job, and the place gave me the creeps. The place was repugnant; I went to the
bathroom and I couldn’t tell if I was pissing in the sink or the urinal. And
then everywhere I looked there was a guy cradling a gun like it was their dick.
Not to mention the possibility that if I bumped into someone it could have been
the exact moment where he decided that he had had enough and it was time to
blast my head off.
Sure
not everyone who owns a gun is like that, hell most people who own a gun I
would say are ok but like I said before, it only takes one guy. Im I saying
that I oppose guns? No, in fact we need guns; otherwise what are we supposed to
hunt with, bows and arrows? We are not all like Katniss Everdeen. Im not saying
anything really because the bottom line is, what is the two cents of a 21 year
old white American film blogger going to do in the end?
Michael
Moore whether you like him or not can make a very good documentary. He knows
how to stage interviews, how to edit his information together, and how to show
exactly what needs to be shown, but I still can’t enjoy him no matter how good
he is because after all he is just a documentary filmmaker.
7/10
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