Do people accept the movie Fahrenheit 9/11 as a documentary or as factual?
What about responses to Fahrenheit 9/11, such as Celsius 41.11 or Fahrenhype 9/11? Are they seen as documentaries or as factual?
WRS
I am not a religious person, but this made me drop into very serious prayer, asking that nobody thinks any of it is factual.
Yes, people do.
I’ll move this one to IMHO, as you’re looking for opinions rather than cold hard facts.
Hopefully, this one doesn’t wind up in the Pit.
samclem GQ moderator
(emphasis added)
Please clarify what the object of “it” is: is it Fahrenheit 9/11? is it Celsius 41.11 and Fahrehype 9/11? is it all three?
Perhaps I should explain. I have heard tons about Fahrenheit 9/11. I have also heard of Celsius 41.11 and Fahrenhype 9/11 - but the only thing I know is that they are responses to Fahreheit 9/11. Knowing how worked up I can get about issues, I refuse to watch any of the above.
Nevertheless, my brother and extended relatives refer to Fahrenheit 9/11, as if it portrayed the truth or were a documentary. Some call it their favorite movie/documentary. They certainly don’t seem to question anything about it. From their political stance and their concern on certain issues, I can understand why they would point to the movie.
But what about the rest of the population? What about people on the SDMB? Is it considered a movie, a documentary, or what?
WRS - Maybe I should have put this in Cafe Society since it deals with a movie. But IMHO is perfect. Thanks, samclem. Should have known better.
It’s a documentary… but not a very good one.
I wish I’d gotten to throw eggs. 
Thank you, JThunder.
I don’t want to nitpick, but I do not want to discuss whether it is a documentary or not. I would like to know whether it is considered a documentary or not. Perception vs. reality - I am concerned about the former and not the latter. (The latter issue would be something for Great Debates.)
I will take your response to mean: “I consider it to be a documentary… but not a very good one.” As such, one person’s perception is registered, ignoring whether it is or is not a documentary in reality.
WRS - Perception vs. reality. Important things to consider for each issue.
Thank you.
How many people? To what extent? Parts of it or the whole thing? What about the responses to the movie?
WRS
I enjoyed it very much, but didn’t feel that it was so much a documentary as a loosely-supported, sometimes poingant portrayal of one guy’s take on it all. It holds as much truth for me as any convesation I’d have with Joe Schmoe about the current administration.
Your stance is essentially the same as mine. The only real difference is that I do call it documentary, albeit one whose quality suffers due to its “loosely supported” nature.
It is unabashedly biased, and requires a discriminating eye to separate factual claims from Moore’s opinions, but its facts are definitely well-cited.
It’s certainly telling that the only way people can levy criticism at F9/11 are to either disagree with Moore’s interpretations of the facts – as if having a different opinion is “wrong” somehow – or by grossly distorting what the film does (and doesn’t) claim. At least the rebuttals to the critics are amusing…
Well, if you really insist, I will make an effort to gather my scattered thoughts
Moore’s film is propaganda, and one should therefore investigate any and every assertion it makes–or dismiss it all as manipulation. If one establishes the veracity of an assertion, one then has to ask oneself if one really cares. One must also be aware of the parts of propaganda that are designed to slip under one’s conscious radar, and try to stop them from doing so. I have not seen Fahrenheit 9/11 but I have seen Bowling For Columbine, in which Moore actually contradicts himself from segment to segment. I am therefore comfortable dismissing everything Moore ever says as vicious baloney.
The other two I have not heard of, but I must assume that they were made in response to F9/11, essentially to say “nuh uh!” They’re propaganda also, so the same principles apply.
Actually, I didn’t even need to type all of that up. F9/11 is political, and is therefore a lot of self-serving (and possibly vicious) baloney. Anyone who ever offers political information is actually serving up his own agenda–propaganda. Some people just look more respectable while doing it.
Oh dear. Sorry, I am not playing fair with your poll. I am not supposed to argue about Michael Moore… no, F9/11 is not a documentary, it is propaganda. If the other two were made in reaction to F9/11, then they are propaganda also.
Sattua
So is there any information on a political subject that you would accept?
I haven’t seen any of the ‘response’ movies to F9/11. I do accept the facts of F 9/11. I can easily see when he changes from the “these are the facts” parts to the “this is how that makes me feel” parts. I feel the same way he does some of the time.
I am of the belief that the film had scenes.
Scenes of real people.
Real people discussing thing that happen to be real and which involved real life. No debunking I have ever read as convinced me that it was wrong. So yes, I do believe it is real.
There are factual elements in the film. There are opinionated segments in the film.
Is it factual? Sure, in the sense that I don’t believe Moore fabricated the stories told, and he presented plenty of verifiable facts.
Is it accurate? Hell if I know, because I don’t have the time to do the research myself. I’ve not seen any credible discreditation of the actual facts presented in the film. I don’t personally know those people interviewed in the film, nor do I know how trustworthy they are.
Is it biased? Probably, but I expected that going into a Moore film, so caveat emptor.
Some people accept it as gospel. Some shun it as a pack of lies. I think it’s a bunch of facts with a certain spin applied, and a bunch more opinions with random facts to back them up.
(And I say this as someone who loves Moore’s films, all the way back to Roger & Me.)
I watched the first 10 minutes or so, and after several non-facts (four big ones as I recall) were presented as important facts, I ceased watching.
So, if your task at hand is counting the faithful and the skeptics, here’s one check for the right column.
It’s a documentary in the loosest possible sense.
Probably only documented actions of a politician–bills proposed (which may still be hot air), and the voting record on bills. Management of funds.