Bowling for Columbine (DVD+R)
IMDB
- Cast: Michael Moore, Charlton Heston, Matt Stone
Director:
Michael Moore
Categories: Culture & Society
Rated: R
Running Time: 123 minutes
Synopsis
Filmmaker, author, and political activist Michael Moore trains his
satirical eye on America's obsession with guns and violence in his third
feature-length documentary, which gets its title from a pair of loosely related
incidents. On April 20, 1999, shortly before they began their infamous killing
spree at Columbine High School in Littleton, CO, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold
attended their favorite class, a no-credit bowling course held at a bowling
alley near the school, the same bowling alley which would become the scene of a
robbery and triple homicide two years later. While pondering these events,
Moore humorously considers the link between random violence and the game of ten
pins; along the way, Moore calls on the Michigan Militia (and gets to know some
of the models for their "Militia Babes" calendar); spends some time with James
Nichols, brother of Oklahoma City bombing accomplice Terry Nichols; visits
K-Mart's corporate offices with two teenagers injured in the Columbine massacre
as they ask the retail chain to stop selling bullets for handguns; investigates
the media's role in the American climate of fear and anger; compares crime
statistics in the United States with those of Canada (which, despite higher
unemployment and a larger number of guns per capita, manages to rack up a small
fraction of the homicides committed in the United States), and questions actor
and National Rifle Association president Charlton Heston regarding his
appearance at a pro-gun rally held in Littleton a few days after the Columbine
massacre, and a similar rally in Flint, MI, after a six-year-old boy killed a
classmate with a gun he took from his uncle's house. Bowling for Columbine
received its first public screening at the 2002 Ann Arbor Film Festival; the
film's official premiere took place a few months later at the Cannes Film
Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
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