# Fahrenheit 9/11 wins Palme d'Or at Cannes! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 23, 2004, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640 "2004-05-23T11:25:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/21 "2004-05-23T17:32:01Z")
Damned Frenchie bastards. What do you expect? Do you know they even screened _The Assassination of Richard Nixon_ there? That’s right, it’s not enough to give the top award to a movie that makes a lame pun of 9/11, they have to get their jollies watching a movie glorifying Samuel Byck, who forced his way into the cockpit of a commercial airliner, intending to crash it into the White House in an attempt on Richard Nixon’s life. And who plays the lead? The Loony Left’s favourite son, Sean Penn! Where is the _outrage?_ :mad: [/Bill O’Reilly glasses] ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/22 "2004-05-23T17:49:16Z")
Well, I think it’s a commentary on the quality of entrants in this year’s Cannes as much as it is on Moore’s film. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/23 "2004-05-23T18:29:28Z")
Thanks to the OP for opening this up. I’ve never been happy with Moore’s casual attitude to facts and chronology in his documentaries, but one has to admit that he does raise important issues that ought to be discussed. Certainly, Bush’s actions on 9/11 and the shoddy way he has bamboozled this country into the Iraq war ought to be investigated. That’s what we do in a free society, ask questions of our leaders. But for some fools it’s much easier to engage in Francophobic rhetoric (ignoring the fact that the French are our allies in Afghanistan) than to actually **watch the goddamn film for themselves**. I despair that simpleminded puppets like **Flickster** and **Abbie Carmichael** , who regurgitate what Fox News has told them to think, believe they are holding original opinions. ---
**Author:** ![flickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7bcc69/32.png) [@flickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flickster)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/24 "2004-05-23T19:30:10Z")
> [@gobear](#): > > Thanks to the OP for opening this up. > > I’ve never been happy with Moore’s casual attitude to facts and chronology in his documentaries, but one has to admit that he does raise important issues that ought to be discussed. Certainly, Bush’s actions on 9/11 and the shoddy way he has bamboozled this country into the Iraq war ought to be investigated. That’s what we do in a free society, ask questions of our leaders. > > But for some fools it’s much easier to engage in Francophobic rhetoric (ignoring the fact that the French are our allies in Afghanistan) than to actually **watch the goddamn film for themselves**. > > I despair that simpleminded puppets like **Flickster** and **Abbie Carmichael** , who regurgitate what Fox News has told them to think, believe they are holding original opinions. I hardly believe I was the 1st to formulate this opinion on Mr. Moore’s work of art, as they are too widely held. In case you haven’t noticed, there are also those on the liberal side who adopt the opinions of _insert favorite liberal news source here_. Come to think of it, what’s the latest count of how many editors and reporters have been bounced from the NYT & USA Today for credibility problems? ---
**Author:** ![TwistofFate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@TwistofFate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwistofFate)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/25 "2004-05-23T19:38:15Z")
> [@flickster](#): > > On the same token, can you agree that there is at least a chance that political motivation entered into how this film was received (and judged) in Cannes? Nope. it’s a film competition that has never let politics enter into it before, why assume it has now? ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/26 "2004-05-23T19:44:37Z")
Just to clear this up… > [@Marley23](#): > > There rest were four Americans, a Brit, a Finn, a Belgian, and a Hong Kong…ian. Hong Kongese. As for Mr. Moore…I kind of find him to be the **Reeder** of the film world. May be right occasionally, but in a documentary or the Dope you would prefer 100% (as well as possible) accuracy in polemic. You don’t know whether you’re happy that he’s not attacking your guys, or just wish he’d shut up. ---
**Author:** ![litost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c4cdca/32.png) [@litost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/litost)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/27 "2004-05-23T20:07:28Z")
I have scaled down my suspicion that there might be political reasons behind the award. I based that solely on my knowledge of Moore’s past film-making efforts. Without watching the film, it is indeed futile to speculate on its artistic merits. May be the film was really well-done or the entries this year weren’t that competitive. (But then, Pulp Fiction won this award and I don’t consider that film to be that good either… suppose juries every year have different tastes) ---
**Author:** ![chique](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@chique](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chique)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/28 "2004-05-23T20:32:20Z")
> [@flickster](#): > > In case you haven’t noticed, there are also those on the liberal side who adopt the opinions of _insert favorite liberal news source here_. Come to think of it, what’s the latest count of how many editors and reporters have been bounced from the NYT & USA Today for credibility problems? As opposed to “news” coporations that continue to employ those with documented credibility problems? ---
**Author:** ![mic84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/977dab/32.png) [@mic84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mic84)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/29 "2004-05-23T21:05:42Z")
> [@gobear](#): > > despair that simpleminded puppets like Flickster and Abbie Carmichael, who regurgitate what Fox News has told them to think, believe they are holding original opinions > [@flickster](#): > > In case you haven’t noticed, there are also those on the liberal side who adopt the opinions of _insert favorite liberal news source here_. Oh, all right, that’s ok, then. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Brutus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Brutus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brutus)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/30 "2004-05-23T21:32:55Z")
> [@chique](#): > > As opposed to “news” coporations that continue to employ those with documented credibility problems? Hey, the BBC is doing the best it can to clean house. It’s not fair to keep harping on them… ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/31 "2004-05-23T22:20:16Z")
So, should I believe the opinions of the judges at Cannes, who actually saw the film, or a bunch of right-wing partisan hacks at Fox News denouncing a movie they haven’t seen? While I’m not as enamored of Moore as I used to be, due to his documented lapses and exaggerations, I am heartened by the reviews of **Fahrenheit 911** who says he’s actually reined in his excesses and “let the footage speak for itself” this time around. ---
**Author:** ![Brutus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Brutus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brutus)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/32 "2004-05-23T22:40:41Z")
Bah. If shit comes out of the hole for six days, why expect gold on the seventh? Mssr.Moore has a unbroken record of churning out partisan shit, chock-a-block full of lies. It is idiotic to expect this one to be any different. ---
**Author:** ![FisherQueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/58f4c7/32.png) [@FisherQueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FisherQueen)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2004, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/33 "2004-05-23T23:47:58Z")
> [@TwistofFate](#): > > Nope. it’s a film competition that has never let politics enter into it before, why assume it has now? Was that sarcasm? I can’t even tell any more… ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2004, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/34 "2004-05-24T04:12:22Z")
> [@flickster](#): > > Right, and the members entertainment industry have kept their noses out of political activism and wouldn’t stoop to taking a swipe at any administration with which they don’t agree. Are you really that naive? Why shouldn’t they? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2004, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/35 "2004-05-24T05:13:52Z")
> [@Abbie Carmichael](#): > > A Bush bashing film went over well in France? > > I’m shocked!!! > > Just shocked, I say! **Abbie** , you’re normally fairly reasonable. The above, though… When another poster has already pointed out that the judging panel included _one_ French person and _four_ Americans… well, it makes you sound like a fucking moron. Frankly, I can’t believe there hasn’t been a bigger outcry over Disney locking up the film. Maybe it _is_ like Moore’s interviews, and it’s a two hour anti-Bush propaganda piece. On the other hand, it might actually be pretty accurate. Do the right thing, Disney, and let us decide for ourselves. ---
**Author:** ![DoctorJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctorj/32/2904_2.png) [@DoctorJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoctorJ)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2004, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/36 "2004-05-24T05:17:13Z")
My big hope is that Moore took the Al Franken route this time and had his movie vetted for stringent factual accuracy. There’s no reason not to; there is plenty in reality to rile the left up and make Bush look bad without resorting to distortion. When the facts of the movie are in question, that becomes the focal point of any discussion that ensues. It makes it easy for those who disagree with Moore to dismiss him and avoid discussing any points that his movies have made. I expect that even if this movie is indisputably factual down to the letter, it will still be, “but…he edited Charleton’s speech! He’s a liar! And he’s fat!” (For the record, I thought BfC was a fraction of the movie it could have been, just because it was so scattered. Many said that its failure to make a single point was a strength, but I thought he could have taken the “culture of fear” idea and run with it far more than he did. Also, the movie seemed to come to the conclusion that guns weren’t necessarily the problem, and then closed with the K-Mart bit and the Heston interview, which strongly implied that guns are the problem after all.) ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2004, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/37 "2004-05-24T05:52:13Z")
> [@](#): > > **flickster** : Right, and the members entertainment industry have kept their noses out of political activism and wouldn’t stoop to taking a swipe at any administration with which they don’t agree… Are you suggesting that members of the entertainment industry _should_ be politically inactive? _Why???_ Are you nursing a grudge against John Wayne and Ronald Reagan? Entertainers are Americans too and _every_ American has the right to criticize those who have been selected for positions of public service. Public servants should not be treated as gods or kings. _They are to be held accountable to the people._ Likewise, those who are in the entertainment industry must be held accountable for any information that they present as fact. And those who challenge what is said in the film should be able to back up their claims with indisputable data. > [@](#): > > …although from the news associated with the film it sounds like it’s purely a anti-Bush political hack job. Really? The biggest news about it seems to be that it just won the most prestigious film award in the world yet someone doesn’t want Americans to see it. Wonder why that is… > [@](#): > > flickster: I hardly believe I was the 1st to formulate this opinion on Mr. Moore’s work of art, as they are too widely held. Widely held by you and other people who haven’t seen it? ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2004, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/38 "2004-05-24T06:23:04Z")
> [@Brutus](#): > > Mssr.Moore has a unbroken record of churning out partisan shit, chock-a-block full of lies. It is idiotic to expect this one to be any different. And yet, you don’t have a problem with Fox News. Curious… > [@Really Not All That Bright](#): > > Do the right thing, Disney, and let us decide for ourselves. What I love is disney’s assertion that they don’t want to sponsor “political speech” in an election year, but haven’t lifted a finger against carrying Rush Limbaugh and Bill O’Reilly on ABC’s radio stations. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![TwistofFate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@TwistofFate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwistofFate)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2004, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/39 "2004-05-24T09:49:19Z")
> [@FisherQueen](#): > > Was that sarcasm? > > I can’t even tell any more… The Palm d’Or, to my knowledge, has never been awarded for political reasons. ---
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2004, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640/40 "2004-05-24T10:13:35Z")
How about people waiting till they actually **see** the fucking thing before they start whinning. _Wahhhh Wahhhhh fat liberal just made fun of my chimp like leader Wahhhh Wahhhh_ [BBC Review: Fahrenheit 9/11](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/3722769.stm) BTW A movie about Columbine called _Elephant_ won it last year. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fahrenheit-9-11-wins-palme-dor-at-cannes/246640.md?page=3)