Truth, Documentary and Moore in Japan

Today we went to Ueno Park with the kids, and I shot 187 pictures. Here are some images from our trip to the Hakone area that I wrote about recently. The lower images are of a pair of massive metal gates built into a hillside. I don't know what purpose they serve, but they certainly added to the image of nature-metal-concrete that prevails in that place.

Thursday night I saw "Bowling for Columbine"on Japanese TV. "Bowling..." is an Academy Award winning documentary made by Michael Moore, who more recently released "Fahrenheit 911". This was my first Michael Moore documentary, and now I understand why he is such a compelling filmmaker. He very much wants to change popular perspectives and challenge Americans to act differently, and I respect him for it. In "Bowling for Columbine," Moore asks and ultimately fails to answer why violence is so pervasive in American society. But along the way he exposes cliched arguments that don't work and leaves a burden on viewers to come up with their own response and do something. Moore's personal agenda, by the way, is ok in my opinion. Documentaries are not "news shows" and Moore is NOT a journalist; his work is not subject to journalistic standards of objectivity. Many people are angry because Moore is obviously biased. But documentaries, at least the interesting ones, are made by people with something to say. They are (or should be) the fimmaker's best and honest attempt to document something significant. It's up to the viewer to gather other perspectives and then decide what to believe or reject.

But there's another problem. The average American -- or person anywhere, maybe -- is quite susceptible to authoritatively delivered information on screen. Moore knows this and makes the most of his powerful platform. The people running Bush' and Kerry's campaigns know about the power of media, too, and they also make the most of it. People need to sift through layers of IT and decide how to vote, what to think, what to do. But it's far easier to choose one person (Michael Moore, Rush Limbaugh, Bush, Kerry, your favorite blogger) and just accept whatever he/she says.

Apart from all this, I wondered how "Bowling For Columbine" would play in Japan. I'd say Moore's work confirms what most Japanese already believe; in fact, what most people outside the USA are coming to think. America hasn't fared so well in the eyes of the world these past 4 (or 24) years. I don't want to set myself up as a liberal OR conservative blogger. I don't think I fit either category well. I don't want to settle for mere ideology. I want truth that fleshes out in the crucible of real life, that's all.

Posted by jw at September 19, 2004 12:31 AM