Film Industry Gives Controversial Iraq Film Ovation

By Arthur Spiegelman

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (Reuters) - Director Michael Moore's controversial anti-Iraq war film "Fahrenheit 9/11" won a standing ovation on Tuesday night from an audience of film industry professionals attending its West Coast debut at Academy Award headquarters.

After an audience of more than 600 people in the theater of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences cheered, whistled and laughed their way through the two-hour film, they jumped to their feet to give Moore a standing ovation as he took the stage.

Clearly buoyed by the reception, Moore, whose film is scathingly critical and mocking of President Bush, declared: "There has been a shift in this country. ... The average American is finally beginning to figure it out. We were duped (into invading Iraq)."

In his remarks on Tuesday, Moore predicted "Fahrenheit 9/11" will do three times as well as his Columbine movie, which earned a record amount for a documentary film, $21.5 million.