MICHAEL MOORE THROWS all his cards on the table in the
opening moments of Capitalism: A Love Story, with an intro that
none-too-subtly splices together scenes from a movie about the fall of
Rome with shots from contemporary America.
“This is capitalism,” he intones over scenes of empires whose
decadence is cresting into decay, thanks to corrupt politicians and an
indifferent populace. “A system of taking and giving. Mostly taking.”
We get it, Michael.
Subtlety has never been Moore’s strong point, and his send-up of the
capitalist system is no more nuanced than his muckraking in previous
films like Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 9/11.
Anyone with a leftist bent and a passing familiarity with recent
headlines will be versed in Moore’s rhetoric here, and Moore’s methods
haven’t changed: He’s still fundamentally a schlubby,
not-particularly-charismatic screen presence. Yet despite all of this,
Capitalism works.
The first half of the film feels like a wide-ranging therapy
session, as Moore works out his indignation on a variety of issues
relating to unchecked and unregulated greed. There’s a lot to be mad
about, from bank bailouts during the financial crisis to the
privatization of juvenile detention centers to the practice of
employers taking out secret life insurance policies on their employees,
and predictably, Moore’s pissed about all of it.
Underneath all the cynicism and silly guerilla stunts, though, Moore
operates from a position of hope, and it’s no surprise that he’s
heartened by Obama’s election. After the 2009 election the message of
the movie shifts to one of hope and resistance, and Capitalism becomes downright inspiring as Moore zeroes in on examples of Americans
across the country rejecting the rules of unchecked capitalism.
Detroit’s police chief decides to stop enforcing foreclosures. Obama
expresses his support for striking workers in Chicago. US
Representative Marcy Kaptur from Ohio urges families to refuse to leave
their foreclosed homes.
Perhaps most effective of all is Moore’s inclusion of heartbreaking
footage of Franklin D. Roosevelt, only a year before his death,
proposing a “second Bill of Rights,” one that would’ve guaranteed all
Americans access to work and health care. Here, Moore lets the
historical record speak for itself—and it loudly proclaims that
our nation’s leaders haven’t always believed in leaving the people to
fend for themselves.
Capitalism isn’t a perfect movie, but it’s an affecting and
effective one—and it’s landed at a time when more people than
ever are ready to hear its message.
Uh, sarcasm ≠ irony. Sarcasm = sarcasm. Irony = unintended consequences. Like, attempting to escape your fate of killing your father and fucking your mother by running away, then discovering years later that you have, in fact, killed your father and boned mommy. For instance. There’s plenty of irony in this movie (for example, the quite wealthy Michael Moore bemoaning capitalism, despite the fact that his film is only distributed to big, corporate theaters), but what you’re talking about it most def. sarcasm.
Glad the big hypocrite is at least letting all the Workers of the World into his movie for free.
I really hate to say it, but I agree with D here. Maybe he’ll give it away free on the internet or put it in the public domain (or a CC license) once the theater run is over, though. But I won’t hold my breath for that.