Fahrenheit 9/11

By opening this bombshell exposé of rampant Bush administration corruption with a cheeky blitz of sarcasm and loose facts about the 2000 election, Michael Moore may well alienate and discredit himself with the very undecided and right-leaning voters he means to convert. But the last hour of Fahrenheit 9/11--which shattered box office records to become the highest-grossing documentary of all time--is so powerful, devastating, and incontrovertible that anyone whose mind isn't closed by the first two reels of cheap shots at Bush's character will likely leave the theater shaking with anger at the duplicity exposed, the cover-ups unmasked, the wholesale manipulation (in back rooms) and fear-mongering (on the airwaves) in the build-up to the war in Iraq, and the lies, the lies, the lies--all of which Moore documents with the kind of veracity the film needed most in the initial segments. As with all of his proudly muckraking documentaries (Roger & Me, The Big One, Bowling for Columbine), the facts in Fahrenheit 9/11 are often stage-managed; but that doesn't dilute the impact of its scandalous revelations, or such shocking sights as Bush clowning for the camera only seconds before his "solemn" announcement that he'd begun the 2003 attack on Iraq. The beginning of this film is embarrassingly ignoble, but if enough people stick with it, the balance of the picture might just help change the world for the better. Definitely recommended. [Note: DVD extras--under a menu titled “Mike's Homeland Security System”--include an 11-minute featurette on the film's release and reactions received, the 18-minute war journalist segment “Eyewitness Account from Samarra, Iraq,” a four-minute segment featuring remarks by “Lila Lipscomb at the Washington DC premiere,” seven new scenes including “Bush After His ‘Visit' with the 9/11 Commission,” and “Arab-American Comedians,” and trailers. Bottom line: a fine extras package for the highest-grossing documentary of all time.] (R. Blackwelder)