Capitalism: A Love Story — Are you in love?
By Mark Monchek − October 07, 2009
Michael Moore is a truly passionate man, and 20 years after his first film Roger and Me, he has become a truly great filmmaker. You don’t have to agree with him, in fact you can hate him (which many people do), but ya gotta give the homey from Flint his props. He is, by far, the most successful documentary filmmaker of all time. Ken Burns is my man, but Moore has the box office and DVD sales to prove it.
His success renders the main point of his new film Capitalism: A Love Story a bit disingenuous. In the film, he makes the claim that Capitalism is Evil. He says it flat out, over and over again. Yet he calls it a Love Story, and he really isn’t being sarcastic. Micheal Moore really does love America. And he really does love Capitalism, Franklin Delano Roosevelt-style. He doesn’t want to move to Germany, Italy or Japan – some of the social democracies he extols in the film. As far as I know, he has not taken the millions he has made and spread it around to the poor people he so effectively champions in this dynamic, entertaining and engaging movie. I have no problem with Michael Moore making lots of money, and in the process educating people on the evils of our current version of Capitalism. In fact, one might use Big Mike as a stellar example of Capitalism at its best; Moore is making a profit by creating something innovative and highly valuable. He is a first class innovator. He brought humor and entertainment to some painful and seemingly incomprehensible subjects, including complex corporate finance, gun violence, health care, and anti-terrorism.
And make no mistake about it, this love story is compelling and truthful in many ways. While you may not agree with his conclusions, he puts an all-too-human face on the horror of evicted families, teenagers being locked up for minor offensives to put money in the pockets of crooked prison operators and workers who have lost both their job and their pension.
I do appreciate the love/hate relationship Mr Moore has with America and its brand of capitalism, and I applaud his challenge to us. He knows that we can do better, and must if we are going to make this country stand for the values I and he grew up with. Values like the notion that anyone who wants a meaningful job, a decent home in a safe community and a good education for their kids can get it. We at the Opportunity Show are on a mission to help businesses and the people who work in them create the opportunities to support those values.
