Bowling for Columbine (2002)

Filmmaker Michael Moore explores the roots of America's predilection for gun violence.

Director:

Michael Moore

Writer:

Michael Moore

Stars:

Michael Moore, Charlton Heston, Marilyn Manson

Won 1 Oscar. Another 40 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Michael Moore	...	Himself - Narrator
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Salvador Allende	...	Himself - President of Chile (archive footage)
Jacobo Arbenz	...	Himself - President of Guatemala (archive footage)
Mike Bradley	...	Himself - Mayor of Sarnia, Ontario, Canada
Arthur A. Busch	...	Himself - County Prosecutor: Flint, Michigan (as Arthur Busch)
George Bush	...	Himself (archive footage)
George W. Bush	...	Himself (archive footage)
Michael Caldwell	...	Himself - Police Detective
Richard Castaldo	...	Himself - Columbine Victim
Dick Clark	...	Himself
Bill Clinton	...	Himself (archive footage)
Steve Davis	...	Himself - Deputy Sheriff (archive footage)
Ngo Dinh Diem	...	Himself - President of South Vietnam (archive footage)
Mike Epstein	...	Himself - Shopper in Mall
Joe Farmer	...	Himself - Superintendent of Schools (archive footage)

Storyline

The United States of America is notorious for its astronomical number of people killed by firearms for a developed nation without a civil war. With his signature sense of angry humor, activist filmmaker Michael Moore sets out to explore the roots of this bloodshed. In doing so, he learns that the conventional answers of easy availability of guns, violent national history, violent entertainment and even poverty are inadequate to explain this violence when other cultures share those same factors without the equivalent carnage. In order to arrive at a possible explanation, Michael Moore takes on a deeper examination of America's culture of fear, bigotry and violence in a nation with widespread gun ownership. Furthermore, he seeks to investigate and confront the powerful elite political and corporate interests fanning this culture for their own unscrupulous gain.

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Plot Keywords:

firearm | national rifle association | columbine high school killings | gun control | school shooting | 

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Taglines:

One Nation Under The Gun

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Genres:

Documentary | Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some violent images and language

Details

Official Sites:

Michael Moore Official Website

Country:

USA Canada Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 November 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Akiryhtos polemos

Filming Locations:

Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$209,148, 13 October 2002, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$21,244,913, 11 May 2003

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$35,564,473, 31 December 2002

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Artists,Alliance Atlantis Communications,Salter Street Films International

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When the movie won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at The 75th Annual Academy Awards (2003), Michael Moore sparked a controversy by denouncing the George W. Bush administration on stage.

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Goofs

As Charlton Heston walks away from Michael Moore in the final interview, the scene cuts repeatedly between Heston (point of view from behind Moore) and Moore (point of view from the stairs directly in front of Moore) holding a photo of the slain Flint, Michigan girl and asking Heston to look at it. When the POV is of Moore holding the photo, there is clearly no cameraman anywhere behind him. The same with the POV of Heston, there is clearly no cameraman anywhere in front of Moore. So the two POVs were not filmed simultaneously as the film implies.

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Quotes

Charlton Heston: (At an National Rifles Association meeting) I have only five words for you: FROM MY COLD DEAD HANDS!

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Crazy Credits

There is no cast list, either at the start of the film or at the end. People are credited either by subtitle, by the narrator or by themselves.

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Alternate Versions

In the theatrical release, a caption was inserted into a 1988 Bush-Quayle ad, "Revolving Doors," which read "Willie Horton released. Then kills again." In the DVD release, the caption reads "Willie Horton released. Then rapes a woman." Neither version makes it clear that the text was not part of the original ad.

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Connections

Featured in Boogie special: Marilyn Manson (2003)

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Soundtracks

The Nobodies
(2000)
Written by John 5 (as John Lowery) and Marilyn Manson (as Brian Warner)
Performed by Kurt Engfehr

User Reviews

A movie that should be mandatory for all politicians

Yes Mr. Moore may lean left, and yes he may not be the most objective documentarian.

However the facts stand: America has many, many more deaths attributed to guns than any other nation. It's a sad truth.

Unfortunately Mr. Moore has been vilified for asking why. And typical of the "head-stuck-in- the-sand" mentality of the far right, they are angry for his work, not at the facts.

This movie is well done and if you're left, right, in-between, gun nut, or responsible gun owner it is definitely worth viewing.

I suspect most of the negative comments posted about this movie at IMDB and similar sites are by people who haven't seen the movie. They're just angry at what they perceive the movie to be.

It isn't a movie about gun control. It's a movie that merely ask why so many deaths.

Enjoy.