Exclusive Review: Madeleine: Fahrenheit 911 In France - Opening Day

THE OPENING FEEL: In France F911 opened today in 240 mainstream theatres. No particular rating. Many teenagers in the audience.

In Lyon, the film was shown in the three major theatres of the leading UGC chain. It headlined the ads.

Not so much of a queue outside as most people had been reserving.

It was 16. 30 PM and the theatre was crowded (though not quite full).

The audience didn't get as emotional as in American theatres, they didn't clap nor shouted. They mainly laughed at the funny moments and remained silent otherwise.

There were heavy discussions at the end when people got outside.

A majority of good reviews.

Acknowledged as a documentary even by the most reactionary right-wing paper.

-----------------
MY REVIEW

Solemn, sober, rigorous.
Very little humour. Very little entertainment.

Dignity.

Self-effacement and, yes, humility.

In many ways, F911 is not what I expected. I realize now that, from what I had read, I had somehow gotten the idea that Moore had chosen the easy way, preferred efficiency to beauty. He didn't. He deeply respected his audience and trusted people's intelligence. Beyond that, he fought the battle of evermore : not the activist's against an adversary viewpoint, but the artist's against the man-of-power. He's Emile Zola defending Dreyfus in "J'accuse", Charlin Chaplin smoking out "The Dictator", Victor Hugo debunking imposter Napoleon III in "Les Châtiments". Tarantino didn't lie when he said the Palme d'Or was artistic.

Greatness. The sheer power of a breathless hurricane of facts, a merciless web of proofs, a cross-fire of questions raised, an honest involvement, and, above all, the secret dominance of sincere vibrant sadness behind the powder and the fighting.

No, this time it's not showman Moore against buffoon Bush. It's Lila Lipscomb against the President of the United States. In America, Moore was criticized for limiting himself to personal attacks, in France it was more like, "oh don't give us that cheap emotion". But the heartbreaking dignity of the black screen replacing the WTC burning show how far Moore really is from any kind of sensationalism. And then there's an internal necessity to the choice of these two "standout" characters. The film opens with a brief reminder of how Bush stole the election : his illegitimacy is his original sin, the reason why he can't be trusted and the reason why he can only cheat on his people. On the other hand, Lila is the blind led by the blind, who eventually begins to see.

The sober way Moore parallels these destinies without interfering is deeply moving. And, just as scientific discoveries come from experience, thinking comes from emotion. At the end of the movie, essential, universal questions are born from the facts, then from the emotions : how much truth was hidden by the media from the people?

What makes the reign of greed possible?
Why were these youngsters sent to war?
Is there such a thing as a just war?
What is war's secret function in a society?
Is fear distilled by lying powers that be the essence of totalitarianism?
There are others...

O the unfathomable stupidity of moorewatch advertising to download THIS, and how I understand Mike's jubilation and laughter! Children under 17 will see the movie. The movie will shock many people. It will convince others. It will affect everybody. It's downright compelling.

It's strange how universal Moore can be just by speaking about what he knows best, even if it is a tiny part of the world. Flint is to his works what Manhattan is to Woody Allen. Both of them prove that when you are who you are, you can have an impact on nearly everyone. Moore is here and now, but, because he's a mighty artist, his movie is universal and timeless. In France, we're also losing our grip on democracy, we also have a greedy liar as a President, and we're also influenced by the constant use of fear by the government. But we have no Michael Moore. Or rather, we do have one, the same as you : he belongs to the world.

Madeleine