Slacker Uprising
After 20 years and five films, Michael Moore has finally made a documentary. I know how shocking that’ll be to people who condemn Moore’s filmmaking tactics and not-so-subtle agendas, as put forth in films from his 1989 landmark “Roger & Me” to 1998’s “The Big One,” 2002’s Oscar-winning “Bowling for Columbine,” 2004’s “Fahrenheit 9/11,” and last year’s “SiCKO.” But here Moore finally does something other documentarians have been doing since the silent era- instead of putting fore his beliefs, he simply documents an event- in this case, a 62-city tour he made in the six weeks before the 2004 Presidential election in an attempt to get as many young people to register and vote as possible in a drive to remove George W. Bush from office.
Well, we all know how well that worked out- Bush won out by the smallest margin ever for a sitting president, and the country has been downhill ever since. But thing’s aren’t completely hopeless- as the conclusion of Moore’s film shows, 54 of the 62 cities visited went to John Kerry, and Kerry won the youth vote by a landslide, even if it was the only demographic he won. This year, Barack Obama has taken the momentum of four years ago to new heights with a campaign built from the ground up on the support of young voters, who’ve helped contribute to the hundreds and millions of dollars raised (myself being one of them proudly) and been at the center of a grassroots campaign unlike any other in modern political history. The result has been a groundswell of youthful enthusiasm that seems to be on the cusp of toppling the most radical Republican machine in history. In bowling terms, it’s not unreasonable to say that Moore set things up while Obama is primed to knock them down.
Like his earlier films (although he largely took a step off-camera in “Fahrenheit” and “SiCKO,” with his subjects taking precedent), Moore is front and center onscreen in “Slacker Uprising,” but gone is his usual voiceover, so ripe with ballsy wit and purpose over the absurdity of the state of our Union. But as the film goes on, its’ spirit is never forgotten, with Moore following his tour from places like Ohio (including a visit to Kent State- my mother’s alma mader- where the infamous protests of May 4- which resulted in 4 dead- took place), West Virginia (where pro-Bush Republicans protested and Catholic students recited the rosary), his home state of Michigan (where his offers of Ramen Noodles and clean underwear to pledged 1st time voters caused a ruckus with the Republicans in the state), Utah (where a local man filed a lawsuit to have him banned from speaking), California (where a San Diego college was forced to forbid him from speaking on campus, resulting in the rally being held in a much-larger venue), and finally Florida (Tallahassee, no less) to reach out to the democratic faithful, open things up to the Republican devoted (who, he assures us and them, will still be allowed to marry each other with Democrats regain power, a not-so-subtle swipe at the gay marriage bans so prominent that year), and continue his drive for continued free speech, our nation’s most important value.
The sight of thousands of enthusiastic young people may only resonate with the already-converted, as will the moving musical performances by the likes of Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder and Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello. But Moore’s point is to generate that same enthusiasm in his supporters, so that they might be inspired to act, and inspire others to act.
Part of that comes from his unorthodox release method. After having scored box-office hits with his three previous film (“Bowling,” “Fahrenheit,” and “SiCKO” are all in the top 5 of highest-grossing docs ever), Moore has decided to release “Slacker Uprising” only online, only for free- the first such release by a major filmmaker or studio (with The Weinstein Company still flipping the bill for Moore’s movies)- with a message encouraging fans to download, burn, and screen the film anyway they see fit to get the word out, and get people to get out on November 4. Sure, a $10 DVD is available for non-downloaders, but Moore’s choice comes from a desire to thank his fans for their 20 years of patronage since his blue-collar debut with “Roger & Me.” Moore’s methods may have changed with “Slacker Uprising” (which lacks the cinematic urgency of his last three films but is nonetheless entertaining for it), but his populist message remains the same. Change comes from the people, not the political establishment. It’s a message he shares with Obama. Another thing the two share- a desire to lead change in the way Americans govern themselves…by taking government accountability to the people…like our Four Fathers did over 200 years ago when they started the Constitution of this country with three simple words…”We the People.” It’s pure Capra from “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” but that doesn’t make it any less true. Count me in guys.
