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Bowling for Columbine
Jan. 30th, 2003 07:56 amSaw this on the weekend with friends. It was as incisive and savagely satirical as I had expected, but what surprised me was that it wasn't a simple polemic against gun culture. Michael Moore himself grew up in a gun-loving state and is a member of the NRA. And although he pulls no punches when it comes to exposing people's hypocrisy, ignorance, or greed, there's a sense that he's genuinely seeking answers rather than just putting forward preconceived ideas.
And there are no easy answers, no simple to identify culprits. There are too many complexities and contradictions here. Michael Moore's roving exploration touches on the pervasiveness of guns in the US, the media-driven culture of fear, disparities in the number of gun homicides per country, the bloody history of US military interventions, the power of the arms industry, draconian work-for-the-dole laws, and a startling array of other issues.
One of the most memorable scenes is Michael Moore's interview with Marilyn Manson, whose music was supposedly an evil influence on the teenagers responsible for the shootings. I know little about Marilyn Manson, apart from his reputation as a performer who likes to shock. But I was impressed by how articulate and sincere he was, especially when contrasted with the pro-gun lobbyists who chose to hold a rally in Columbine not long after the shootings. When Michael Moore asks him what he would say to the people of Columbine if given the chance, he answers, "I wouldn't say anything. I would listen."
Thought-provoking hardly begins to cover it.
And there are no easy answers, no simple to identify culprits. There are too many complexities and contradictions here. Michael Moore's roving exploration touches on the pervasiveness of guns in the US, the media-driven culture of fear, disparities in the number of gun homicides per country, the bloody history of US military interventions, the power of the arms industry, draconian work-for-the-dole laws, and a startling array of other issues.
One of the most memorable scenes is Michael Moore's interview with Marilyn Manson, whose music was supposedly an evil influence on the teenagers responsible for the shootings. I know little about Marilyn Manson, apart from his reputation as a performer who likes to shock. But I was impressed by how articulate and sincere he was, especially when contrasted with the pro-gun lobbyists who chose to hold a rally in Columbine not long after the shootings. When Michael Moore asks him what he would say to the people of Columbine if given the chance, he answers, "I wouldn't say anything. I would listen."
Thought-provoking hardly begins to cover it.
