Directed & Starring : Michael Moore
Release Date : December 23, 2015
There's usually a lot of baggage that comes with Michael Moore films, and "Where To Invade Next" is no different. It's easy to just call out the fact that Moore leans far to the left as a progressive liberal, which usually sets the tone of his films' messages, and that's true for this movie as well. There is some propaganda in this, and yes it comes off as a bit biased. However, there's a levity in this film's direction that actually makes it entertaining to watch, whether it's a case where we are laughing at Moore's antics, or laughing at one of those "it's funny because it's true" situations.
The premise of this film is to point out that other countries have some really fantastic ideas that the USA should consider implementing as well. We can criticize that there are half-truths to all of what's presented here, and even Moore says that "he's picking the flowers, not the weeds" of what a country offers for a way of life. He's talking about how Italians get eight weeks of paid vacation a year without a hit in production, the kids of France get four course gourmet meals for their school lunch, Portugal has decriminalized drug use, or how Slovenia has free college university education.
Many of those examples gets a comparison commentary to how it is in contrast to the USA, and often times it's done to shame or put down America for seemingly not doing as good as job as those other countries. In the surface, that seems to be the primary theme of the movie, and it's bound to turn some people off, but there are other worthwhile messages that it has to say as well. There are ongoing threads of concepts and ideas that link all the examples together, and there's even a very poignant message by the end of the movie that really puts it all into stark perspective.
Despite what you might think about Michael Moore or the premise of "Where To Invade Next," the most important thing this movie does is that it should open up a discussion. If anything else, if you didn't know too much about certain other countries, then there are some reveals here that just might shock you.
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