Roger & Me (1989)

Other than the fact that his presentation of himself as the "Average Guy on the Street" is a little questionable and VERY staged, Roger & Me has a major, major problem if Moore wants it to be taken as a factual documentary. The chronology of the events has been changed.The concept of cause-and-effect is crucial to Roger & Me. One of the defining criteria of a documentary film is the absence of obviously fictional elements. Don't create events, dialog, costumes--and don't manipulate chronology. But that's exactly what he did. When Flint started hemorrhaging jobs, the city did not just stand by and do nothing, they tried to recreate the economy by building the Water Street pavilion, the hotel, and autoworld, attempting to raise tourism money. In the movie, the reverend comes to town for $20k to pray away unemployment, Reagan shows up and his advice is basically to move (wearing a UAW jacket--totally inappropriate for him). Now when Moore comes back to Flint, it's 1986 when the BIG layoffs are happening. It's been intermittent up to this point.In the film these events are presented as a response to the massive layoffs that began in 1986, but Reagan actually came in 1980, the evangelist in 1982, and the tourism plan was in 1985. This is a huge problem for the film and basically disqualifies it as a real documentary because these visits/plans were not a result of the BIG layoffs.These are well-documented, look around a bit, see what you can find. The hotel and Autoworld also went bankrupt before or early on in the layoff cycle, even though they are presented very late in the film.Along the vein of the chronology problem, notice that Moore wants to bring Roger Smith to Flint to see the devastation. The film explains that GM, the richest corporation in the world, closed 11 North American plants. Work went to Mexico. With increased profits, money goes to shareholders. They then invest in high tech weaponry. Before this, they were the most profitable corporation in the history of mankind, but this decision is made to increase the profit margin further (needlessly, the film asserts).So here's my point about that paragraph. They spend 28 seconds on these highly important facts. Now notice that they spend about 5-10 minutes on Miss America, and another 5 or so minutes on the crazy rabbit lady, simply because people will get a kick out of that stuff. That's also a big part of what I'm talking about. How can you discuss complex global economics in 28 seconds? Left out are the facts that there was a significant recession at the time, lots of unemployment, and lots of people buying imports which were cheaper and more efficient with the gas crisis. In order for plants to close, contracts had to be dissolved and the UAW played a huge role in this. This is pertinent information that people need to know if they are to be educated on this subject. Yet Michael Moore is harder on Miss America than on the UAW. He displays some condescension and ambush journalism tactics like with the wealthy old ladies at the golf course.You see, I'm not saying he's lying, I'm saying he's twisting and distorting. The whole thing is just an entertaining film designed to fill theater seats. It's not pure documentary.And like I said, Michael Moore is not just an average blue-collar "one-of-the-guys" type of guy, he's a media giant (admittedly this was not AS true in 1989, but he was still big). Putting on the baseball cap and jeans, not lighting anything, and walking in the front door of GM to try to get an interview with Roger Smith is totally absurd. They were very conscious decisions and very trite ways to get some entertaining footage.Even if you can somehow dismiss those problems with Roger & Me, I have one that's a lot harder to deal with. This film was made on bad faith. He wants to present himself as the intrepid "Joe Plainfolks" going on a noble quest to bring Smith to Flint and force him to own up to the consequences of his decision. This goal was abandoned in favor of making a comedy. Whatever the serious, human, and compelling issues motivated Roger & Me were thrown out the window in favor of making a series of SNL skits.Apparently Roger & Me is not meant to be seen as pure documentary, but as advocacy and partisan journalism, it's just that it's not marketed that way. Sadly, and this is coming from someone who mostly agrees with Moore's opinions, I have to call 'BS' on this film.

When General Motors chairman Roger Smith closed the factory doors in the once prosperous auto capitol of Flint, Michigan, the subsequent citywide depression prompted filmmaker Michael Moore onto a personal quest to confront the GM executive with the consequences of his corporate greed. The result is an irreverent but sobering report that works better as a satire than a documentary, mocking the rich and defending the poor with an almost savage disregard for objectivity.Moore is neither an impartial observer nor a polite critic of Reaganomics, and his guerrilla-tactic documentary is, without apology, a totally biased dissection of the American Dream gone sour. On its surface the film is a record of the director's comic odyssey in pursuit of Smith, who Moore holds personally responsible for transforming his hometown from a proud capitol of industry into what Money Magazine later called the worst city in the USA. But of course Moore himself is as much the subject here as his elusive quarry, and he sets himself up as a champion of the common worker while sometimes poking fun at the same people he should be defending.It's easy to see how the director maintains a straight face, but he doesn't demand the same from his audience. And while his film isn't exactly a comedy, all the ironies and absurdities found in the clash between optimistic civic fantasy and harsh economic reality still provide a hilarious (if morbid) portrait of America in the 1980s. It's too bad that Moore isn't above getting laughs from cheap shots at Conservative mouthpieces like Pat Boone and Bob Eubanks (foolishly sharing ugly AIDS jokes on camera), none of whom are responsible for the Flint City economic chaos.Self-serving humor aside, there's more than enough truth here to shake the confidence of even the most stalwart Republican, with some absurd (almost surrealistic) juxtapositions of rich and poor, contrasting the pipe dreams of civic recovery (Pat Boone recommends a more positive attitude) with the economic nightmare of layoffs and evictions.In retrospect, Moore's need to make a crowd-pleasing movie may have spoiled his aim to hold Smith in any way accountable for his corporate negligence, and the facetious tone and black-comic digressions don't do his progressive agenda any favors. On top of which the director's self-serving publicity (for example his unlikely claim that the project was financed by an ongoing bingo game) has the unfortunate side effect of distracting attention away from the issues, to sell his own blue-collar credentials.

As a prototypical youngest child I have an affinity for feather-ruffling and rabble-rousing. As such, I love these types of movies hence the 8-star rating. Still, this film bothered me in a few ways; the primary one is the basic question of exactly what do corporations owe their employees? Tastes change, technology changes, and not surprisingly business tactics change. I am not sure if Moore or the employees stated this, but what exactly did they want/expect? Of course they wanted to retain their jobs but as I understand it the owners of corporations are looking for increased profits. Cutting costs are one way to do that. One way GM found to cut costs was to manufacture abroad. So, why wouldn't GM do that? Due to employee loyalty? I'm not sure a corporation can exist if employee loyalty comes before profits. I think Moore should have also gone after primary stockholders/owners as well.As I watched, I had a similar thought that I had to consider the source and remember that Moore is a business man and being controversial sells tickets. I had that same feeling watching Sicko. It's like Moore's documentaries outcomes are predefined and he will see to it that it turns out that way. I thought Moore's asking those presumably rich people(and Miss Mich) their impromptu thoughts on the situation was unfair. I would welcome more intelligent debate where both sides are given some time to prepare. Why Roger didn't talk to Moore surprised me maybe Moore liked it that way. After all, did Moore truly do all he could to get an interview? I will bet you this. If on hiring day, every employee was informed that in the future GM may adopt tactics that would result in job losses, but that if this occurred laid-off employees might receive a severance package, the vast majority would still have taken the job regardless of these known pitfalls.To me, going to work for a corporation is a buyer-beware situation. As employees we need to maximize our time there. Take your vacations, max out your 401K, take advantage of tuition assistance, get physicals, and watch the behaviors of those successful counterparts who always seem to be in the right place at the right time. Also, if corporations worry you, don't work for them, go to work for a private firm but don't get there and complain about all the benefits your buddies at Verizon (or wherever) are getting.On a side note (perhaps somewhat relevant considering all the layoffs we're experiencing), we Americans need to start living more practically. If you make $50K/year live like you make $43K. If you participate in a 401K plan remember that a 401K is not a rainy-day account, it is a retirement plan. If you do not need a 2000sqft home, don't buy one. Cars and kids don't need their own bedrooms. Smaller homes encourage us to get out of the house which is not a bad thing. While having your own bathroom is convenient, it is so for about 30 minutes/day: SHARE them.Gas prices fluctuate. If you find yourself stressing about that, buy a smaller car and drive less....it can be done. Instead of packing up the bikes and kids and driving them to a bike trail, ride your bikes to the store, bank, video store, zoo, etc.... Also, smaller cars get you from point A to point B exactly like big cars do...only cheaper. While driving smaller, efficient vehicles is not considered cool is beyond me, this means the driver is smart and may have more money to spend...on you. This is not to say that you shouldn't have a comfy car....the problem is when people pull out food-stamps then hop into a brand new Maxima or Escalade.

For a beautiful representation of the divide between the have and have nots of this world, you cant go past 'Roger & Me'. Though quite dated in the aesthetics department, this 1988 doco by master left wing film maker 'Michael Moore', remains a poignant vision of greed and destruction of a town where the major industry (General Motors - who despite record profits up to then decided to close 11 U.S factories country wide & relocate them to Mexico paying the Mexican workers 70 cents / hr,) has shut up shop leaving 13,000 'Flint' locals out of a work. The flow on effect is catastrophic on the working class leaving many destitute fighting poverty and the eviction crew (evicting dozens of people a day, piling their belongings on the nature strip!), while they are unable to find further employment due to many of the town's businesses folding. No incomes means no spending, no spending means failed business. No businesses, means no jobs, no job no in come....well you get the picture. What is greatly insightful is the absolute ignorance the 'Wealthy' display of the troubles in their town, while playing a round of golf and discussing how many of the workers "Just don't want to work"!!!! Just goes to prove things don't change in society, the poor continue to get shafted & the rich are on the whole, selfish, in-sightless, arrogant pricks! I love the smooth over job by G.M, building a music hall and providing performances by crooner Pat Boone & other cabaret stars for half price for those out of work! Having the audacity to import a 'major' preacher to blow smoke up the population's collective arse. Just shows the contempt this company holds and the lengths it will go to distract them from the reality of their predicament! The G.M C.E.O chase is on in true 'Moore' fashion, his mission, a few answers and maybe a bit of interrogation. Looks like he'll have to look beyond his multi million dollar estate,the yacht or golf club!General motors did a damn fine job of creating this apocalyptic landscape for the camera to document and Michael does a fine job of showing the bleakness and giving the viewer an insight of the people's painful predicament.