Michael Moore: Controversy's Best Friend

He’s a wildly opinionated liberal on a mission to change America. Welcome to Watchmojo.com, and today we’ll be taking a look at one of America’s most influential, yet controversial documentary filmmakers, Michael Moore. Born on April 23, 1954 in Flint, Michigan; Michael Moore was a University drop-out turned magazine editor. After being fired for an ideological stunt at the liberal magazine, Mother Jones, Moore sued for wrongful dismissal. His first documentary, “Roger and Me,” was partially funded by the money he was awarded in the out-of-court settlement of this case. “Roger and Me” went on to gain international attention and became one of the top grossing documentaries of all time. It also introduced the world to Moore’s in-your-face style and critique of Globalization. In the film, he chased down the CEO of General Motors in an attempt to have him answer for the economic devastation caused to Moore’s hometown of Flint, Michigan, because of plant relocations to Mexico. Following this breakout success, Moore was given the go-ahead for his television program, “TV Nation.” The show lasted two brief seasons on two separate networks, but won an Emmy after its cancellation in 1995. Years later, Moore again tried his hand at the small screen with his shows, “The Awful Truth” and “Michael Moore Live.” Moore then returned to documentary filmmaking with “The Big One.” For the film, Moore chased the CEOs of several different corporations before finally getting the chance to address the CEO of Nike concerning their labor practices. Moore’s following Academy Award-winning documentary, “Bowling for Columbine,” garnered him critical acclaim for exploring gun violence in America and looking at the conditions that led to the Columbine High School shooting. While “Bowling for Columbine,” was heavily critical of the American government, this sentiment was increased considerably in his 2004 release, “Fahrenheit 9/11.” The film specifically targeted then-president George W. Bush and his administration. At the time, Moore even hoped the film would help prevent a Bush re-election. Despite being unsuccessful with this goal, Moore did succeed in vocalizing the climate of fear and political opportunism the Bush administration had orchestrated due to anxiety surrounding the September 11th attacks. Following that controversial film, Moore released “Sicko,” a documentary tackling the problems within the American health care system. The film premiered at Cannes and received a standing ovation. Moore again found himself embroiled in controversy when it was revealed he travelled to Cuba with ill 9/11 volunteers who were unable to receive medical care in the United States. These huge successes were followed by the poorly received documentary “Captain Mike Across America,” which was later re-edited into “Slacker Uprising” and given out as a free digital download. The film was heavily criticized for being an overly self-promotional effort by Moore. It depicted his travels from campus to campus prior to the 2004 U.S. election as he attempted to get a new generation of voters involved in the political process. Putting politics aside in 2009, Moore released “Capitalism: A Love Story,” which has been viewed either as his most radically effective work yet, or as a slanted and self-righteous condemnation of the U.S. economic system. Over his career, as both a filmmaker and author, Michael Moore has become one of the left wing’s most vocal speakers. He is one of the most recognized documentary filmmakers due to his willingness to push the boundaries of truth by supplementing fact with entertainment and opinion.