Roger & Me (1989)

Director Michael Moore pursues GM CEO Roger B. Smith to confront him about the harm he did to Flint, Michigan with his massive downsizing.

Director:

Michael Moore

Writer:

Michael Moore

Stars:

Michael Moore, Roger B. Smith, Rhonda Britton

14 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael Moore	...	Himself
Roger B. Smith	...	Himself
Rhonda Britton	...	Herself - Pets or Meat Lady
Fred Ross	...	Himself - Eviction Deputy
Kaye Lani Rae Rafko	...	Herself (Miss America)
James Blanchard	...	Himself
James Bond	...	Himself
Pat Boone	...	Himself
Anita Bryant	...	Herself
Karen Edgely	...	Herself
Bob Eubanks	...	Himself
Ben Hamper	...	Himself
Dinona Jackson	...	Herself
Timothy Jackson	...	Himself
Tom Kay	...	Himself

Storyline

A documentary about the closure of General Motors' plant at Flint, Michigan, which resulted in the loss of 30,000 jobs. Details the attempts of filmmaker Michael Moore to get an interview with GM CEO Roger Smith.

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Plot Keywords:

general motors | excuse | manager | getting rid of somebody | avoiding somebody | 

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Taglines:

The story of a rebel and his mike.

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Genres:

Documentary

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Michael Moore Official Website

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 December 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Humorous Look at How General Motors Destroyed Flint, Michigan

Filming Locations:

Detroit, Michigan, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$160,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$80,253, 25 December 1989, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$6,706,368

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dog Eat Dog Films, Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

By 1989, all movie theaters had closed in the city limits of Flint. The premiere was held at Showcase Cinemas, 5205 East Court Street, Burton, MI a small town next to Flint.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Michael Moore: I was kind of a strange child. My parents knew early on that something must have been wrong with me. I crawled backwards until I was two... It all began when my mother didn't show up at my first birthday party, 'cause she was off having my sister, and dad tried to cheer me up by letting me eat the whole cake. I knew then, there had to be more to life than this.

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Crazy Credits

The Flint Plasma Center is open on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Saturday and Sunday, they're closed.

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Connections

Referenced in Stone Reader (2002)

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Soundtracks

Put Your Hand in the Hand
Written by Gene MacLellan
Performed by Anita Bryant

User Reviews

Roger Smith was (is?) a buffoon, but...

...Michael Moore should have stuck to the facts. I lived in the Detroit area (Milford, the home of the GM Proving Grounds) from the early 70's until 2002. The 80's were a rough decade for the auto industry.

Roger Smith became Chairman and CEO of GM in January, 1981. The man was an unmitigated disaster. Among some of the things he proposed was the elimination of GM's engineering division (pink slipping everyone). He didn't think that the world's largest automaker needed an in-house engineering capability. Absolutely moronic!

There were several other examples of Roger Smith's buffoonery. The viewing audience would have been better served had Mr. Moore stuck to the facts. There were several items in this film that were either staged or flat-out false (people who never worked for GM getting evicted, Pres. Reagan being quoted out of context, etc.). This is the typical tactic Mr. Moore uses in all his films.

The upshot? Mr. Moore is a gifted filmmaker and able storyteller. Unfortunately, he doesn't let the facts get in the way of the point he's trying to make. There was no shortage of material on what a moron Roger Smith was (is?). Had Mr. Moore kept with the facts, Roger & Me would not just be entertaining, it would have the added benefit of being factual.