Michael Moore in TrumpLand

This is Michael Moore at his very best—very thoughtful and penetrating, and hardworkingly committed to fostering understanding of some of our fundamental political challenges.

I felt he did an excellent job of presenting the view that Trump's rise on the national political scene is a warranted but ultimately very destructive reaction to the neglect and abandonment of countless Americans by our economic and social order.

"Michael Moore in TrumpLand" is full of genuine humanity and surprisingly gentle humor.

I'm doubtful Moore's efforts in making this film stand much chance of having an impact on the electoral outcome, but I still think it's great that he has given us an offering of such quality.

I must say on an anecdotal note that upon being re-exposed to typical TV coverage of the election after having left a screening of this movie, I felt as though I'd gone from a sane place to a place of true barbarity. (I was really, truly surprised to find how super-barbaric what has grown all-too-familiar of late suddenly seemed.)

Treasonist. Not in all of history has a traitor or a treazonist been hailed as a hero? Sorry Anonymous, with your Guy Fawkes masks, Guy Fawkes Day is actually a celebration of the King's survival against the attack. Which considering your atheism is a paradox, since it was a religious act of terror, a Catholic assault on Anglicanism. But who cares what a liberal or progressive thinks. You really don't think too much. But really? When in history has a traitor or treazonist been hailed as a hero? Never. Stalin is despised by those who lived under Soviet Rule. 50 million dead. Che Guevara is despised in his birth place of Argentina. They destroy every attempt to resurrect his name in honour. Mao killed 100 million of his Komarades. All your heroes are traitors and treazonists. And what does that make you? A hero? No. Try coward on for size. I suspect that will fit.

In the mids of the race to the bottom in the unfolding of this election campaign this statement sure is a breath of fresh air. You may not, and do not have to agree with Michael Moore's viewpoints to see that he does manage to get some historical and future perpectives, a sense of common ground and good humor in the room. Polarisation is such a horrendous side-effect of (bad) election campaigns and defusing it in the heat of the moment is very, very tricky. With commentary from the mainstream media at kindergarten level we need Michaels kind of clowning to ridicule the court and help tie odds and options together. Clever and entertaining. But by all means, don't take his word for it...make up your own mind!

Michael Moore is one of those documentarians that I've been aware of for a long time, yet never took the time to watch anything he's done. Until now, that is. The premise is pretty simple: Michael Moore went into a solidly Republican/conservative part of Ohio (ironically, in Clinton County) and made a pitch for Hillary Clinton. You will not find any Trump-bashing here (at least no vitriol), and what little of him does feature served a purpose. Things started off kind of shaky with Moore doing an occasionally awkward stand-up routine, but once he got the audience's attention/respect and delved into his case for a Hillary Clinton presidency, things smoothed out quite well, and even got quite emotional at times. The only parts that had me rolling my eyes were some of the early jokes and a concluding stunt (I'm guessing/hoping that it was) where he promises to run in 2020 if Hillary doesn't live up to the promise he sees in her. It had the feeling of those hackneyed high school debate speeches where the candidate promises junk food for lunch (or something similarly ridiculous). Even still, he made his point very well (and positively). The technical details of the film weren't necessarily the best, though, probably due to the film's quick production. There are many noticeable points where the audio changes in quality, and some of the editing seemed just a little off. Other than that, I thought that MICHAEL MOORE IN TRUMPLAND was an effective film that made its case without resorting to negativity, and with a minimum of theatrics.

Michael Moore in Trumpland (2015)

** (out of 4)

Even though I rarely agree with Michael Moore, I do enjoy his pictures. As much as I would love to debate him myself, there's no question that he is a talented filmmaker and on that level alone I will respect him even if I don't respect what he often does with his movies.

With that said, MICHAEL MOORE IN TRUMPLAND is without question his least entertaining film. This really isn't a film but instead Moore held what's basically a stand-up act in Ohio where he brought Trump and Clinton supporters together to talk with them. The majority of the rather short running time is baslcally Moore talking about why Clinton should get your vote.

My problem with this film is that it just seems rushed and it certainly doesn't have the quality of Moore's previous pictures. Just check out how nervous Moore seems at the start of this chat. Just listen to how awful his jokes are. He's certainly not a comedian and some of the jokes told are just beyond awful. Even his speech about Clinton isn't nearly as good as you'd expect from him.

The only time that his passion really comes to life is when he's talking about the people who have died due to not having medical coverage. Had the entire film been more of him talking in a serious manor like this then perhaps the film would have had more of an impact. As it stands, it's pretty much the worst film of his career and looks even sillier considering what happened at election time.