Guns: A Day in the Death of America

Okay. So we all know that gun deaths are tragic. We know that innocent people die as a result of senseless gunfire. Yet, nonetheless, Tolkan subjects us to an "eye-opening" documentary into the tragic lives of 61 victims of gun deaths on a random day in 1989. Why? So we can all learn the important lesson that "people don't kill people, guns do." Gimme a break. He even goes so far as to include criminals who are shot and killed by police officers defending themselves and suicide "victims" who use guns to kill themselves - as though, without guns, the suicide victims would have simply shrugged their shoulders and chosen to go on.

This "documentary" is clearly a thinly veiled attempt to enrage viewers to cry out for gun control in some effort by the director, I suppose, to rid the world of tragedy. News-flash, genius - senseless murder happened long before guns existed, and doing away with guns won't solve our problems anymore than your worthless "documentary."

`Guns: A Day in the Death of America,' like the more recent films `Bowling for Columbine' and `Liberty Stands Still,' captures that extremist left-wing notion that we should blame the guns, rather then the criminals who wielded them, for the high gun-related death toll in America. It is a film that one can laugh out loud at its pure ridiculousness. It takes one `random' 24-hour period and illustrates that guns, by themselves, killed over 60 people in this country. This is pretty remarkable since I never believed inanimate objects were capable of murder, although the director of this film feels quite the opposite.

Of course, this movie includes gun related suicides (as if those committing suicides with firearms wouldn't have found another way to end their lives if guns ceased to exist), and it even mentions an instance where a policeman used a gun for SELF DEFENSE (surely defending one's self is a horrible idea in the director's sick mind) in order to exaggerate the death toll and make the problem of gun related violence worse than it really is. And of course, the director fails to mention which guns were obtained through illegal means (I'm sure the majority of the guns that were used in the gang-related murders were not purchased through licensed firearms dealers). Though the movie does not specifically call for increased gun control or a ban on guns, such an agenda was clearly tangible.

If you are looking for an asinine film that explains that people aren't responsible for the actions that they commit with firearms (rather, then guns themselves are responsible for the crimes) then surely this film will satiate your extremist left-wing appetite. On the other hand, if you have half a brain, then take my advice and do not believe the nonsense that this movie attempts to illustrate. Better yet, avoid this movie entirely.

I'm not really certain what the point is. The title and the tone of the naration would lead one to believe that it is advocating gun control, yet the content is anything but that. Throughout the movie there are many references that speak of guns with a tone of distain. The incidents that they site are suicides, gang shootings, and legitimate police shootings. They even mention how one gun "victim" was found with gun shots and stab wounds. I watched it thinking "where's the rest of the investigative story?".

Anyhow, I think the movie was very poor, and made a poor attempt at whatever it was trying to bring across.