Bowling For Columbine (2002)

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Running Time: 140 minutes (approx)

Production Year: 2002

Rating: 15 Certificate

Production Country: Canada/USA/Germany

Filmed in Colour

Michael Moore's Oscar-winning documentary examines America's love affair with guns and violence. Loosely based around the Columbine High School massacre (and containing chilling CCTV footage from the school), one of the film's most memorable scenes sees Moore and injured survivors of the massacre visit K-Mart, where the bullets were bought, to see if they can get a refund for the rounds still lodged in their bodies (this confrontation brings an amazing concession from the multinational).

Equally fascinating is an interview with James Nichols, brother of Oklahoma City bomber Terry Nichols. There's also a telling interview with Marilyn Manson, the rock star demonised because the perpetrators of the Columbine killings were fans of his music; as he points out, he's a convenient target to deflect arguments that might otherwise lead to gun control. Astonishingly, Moore finds a bank that offers a free gun to new account openers. Asking if this isn't just slightly contradictory, the bank calmly points out to Moore that it's also a registered gun dealership.

Moore also asks why Canada, with the same gun ownership per capita as the States, has a fraction of the gun crime, and looks at the way the ultra-competitive American news channels rack up the fear of their viewers with lead stories concentrating on gun crime and murder. And he interviews the late Charlton Heston, the then president of the National Rifle Association, to ask about his appearance at rallies just days after the Columbine High School massacre and another unrelated school shooting.

The film also contains a contribution from comedian Chris Rock, who offers a simple solution to the problem - "Increase the price of bullets. Instead of 17 cents apiece, why not $5,000? At that price, you'd have a lot fewer innocent bystanders shot."

Moore walks a fine line between outrage and humour, leaving his audience either slack-jawed in disbelief or laughing out loud at the absurdity of the situation. He's not interested in placing blame but trying to find out where it all went wrong and what could be done to make America a sane, safe country to live in. In addressing these issues, he delivers a powerful polemic that looks at both sides, making it more effective and entertaining than a one-sided diatribe could ever have been.

Cast

	Jacobo Arbenz		Himself President of Guatemala
	Mike Bradley		Himself Mayor of Sarnia Ontario Canada
	Arthur A. Busch		Himself County prosecutor Flint Michigan
	George Bush		Himself
	George W. Bush		Himself President of the United States
	Michael Caldwell		Himself police detective
	Richard Castaldo		Himself Columbine victim
	Dick Clark		Himself restaurant owner
	Steve Davis		Himself deputy sheriff
	Byron Dorgan		Himself
	Joe Farmer		Himself superintendent of schools
	Denny Fennell		Himself home security consultant
	Barry Glassner		Himself author of "The Culture of Fear"
	John Harris		Himself
	Charlton Heston		Himself actor/NRA president
	Jeremy Hicks		Himself suspended student for wearing kilts
	Ernest F. Hollings		Himself
	Jimmie Hughes		Herself principal of Buell Elementary School
	Dick Hurlin		Himself former producer of "Cops"
	Amanda Lamante		Herself Columbine student
	Mary Lorenz		Herself K-Mart official
	Marilyn Manson		Himself entertainer
	Tom Mauser		Himself father of victim
	Evan McCollum		Himself Lockheed Martin public relations
	Timothy McVeigh		Himself Oklahoma City bomber
	Carey McWilliams		Himself blind gun owner
	Gerald Miller		Himself Welfare-to-Work creator
	Michael Moore		Himself/Narrator
	Mohammed Mossadegh		Himself Prime Minister of Iran
	Dinh Diem Ngo		Himself President of South Vietnam
	James Nichols		Himself brother of Terry Nichols
	Terry Nichols		Himself Oklahoma City bombing accomplice
	Manuel Noriega		Himself President of Panama
	Tamarla Owens
	Robert J. Pickell		Himself sheriff of Flint Michigan
	Augusto Pinochet		Himself Chilean dictator
	Dr. David Satcher		Himself
	Nicole Schlief		Herself
	David Smith		Himself Sarah's husband
	Susan Smith		Herself child murderess
	Matt Stone		Himself former Columbine student
	Mark L. Taylor		Himself Columbine victim