Filmmaker’ “Film Theories” – Michael Moore

Michael Moore is an American filmmaker who is known for criticising the U.S government for it’s inadequacies through performative documentary. He often inserts himself into his films to get his opinion across, and is recognisable for his humour in tackling real issues, often using sarcasm and rhetoric to mock the subject material and also inserting real examples of tragedy to emphasise his point.

“Moore, like Broomfield, is a very visible presence in his documentaries, which can thus be described as participatory and performative. His work is highly committed — overtly polemical in taking up a clear point of view, what might be called agit-prop documentary. He justifies his practice in terms of providing ‘balance’ for mainstream media that, in his view, provides false information. Part of Moore’s approach is to use humour, sometimes to lampoon the subject of his work and sometimes to recognise that documentaries need to entertain and hold an audience.”

Michael’s Objectives:

Moore often attacks U.S administration through his films, inserting his left-wing views to balance information since he believes mainstream media provides false information. He has attacked the American healthcare system, gun legislation, foreign policy and specific government officials like George Bush and members of Congress, as seen in Fahrenheit 9/11 (Michael Moore, 2004).

Michael’s style:

Michael uses performative mode for his documentaries. This is sene in how he inserts himself as a narrator, which he does to make sarcastic and mocking commentary of the subject, and also through direct involvement, such as interviewing members of Congress unexpectedly on the street. He does this to make fun of the subject, but also uses archive footage to provide context, and usually leaves himself out of the film when the more serious subject matter, such as the Iraq War, is being shown. This emphasises the dark nature of the subject he is documenting, and helps to get his points across and justify his humour. He is not making fun of the actual tragedies he bases his criticisms off to show how problems in the U.S law accumulate, but rather making fun of the government for being so disconnected to the problems their country has. This has marked Moore as a distinct and unique filmmaker for giving his views in a un-relenting and persuasive way, while also making his films entertaining and emphasising his points through humour on an otherwise grim subject matter.