Hi everyone!
Welcome back to our final week of reviews for the third quarter. It’s been mad busy here at One Movie Punch, but we’re looking forward to the break and returning for Reign of Terror 2019 – 31 straight days of horror movie reviews and interviews from yours truly, our team of critics, and many guests from around the podcasting world! Everything begins on October 1st and concludes on Halloween with a special, very personal review.
That’s for later, though. This week we have a slate of films that’s sure to excite everyone. We’ll have the sequel to one of the greatest film adaptations of a seminal horror novel. We’ll have the 32 Fans Movies podcast guesting on Takeover Tuesday. We’ll have a special review/interview episode on Wednesday covering an important documentary. One more Certified Fresh film from earlier this year, then we’ll have a pair of reviews from Andrew Campbell and One Movie Spouse to finish out the week and the quarter. Be sure to tune in for Saturday’s episode, where we’ll have a special sneak prequel bit for Reign of Terror.
In the meantime, we have two episodes for you today. Our Patreon episode is the premiere of a special series called “One Movie Punch: Zero Percent”, where I’ll be covering a film which received the worst possible score at Rotten Tomatoes. Today’s debut episode will be covering “The Poison Rose”, starring John Travolta, Morgan Freeman, and Brendan Fraser in a 70s noir drama that will not fail to disappoint.
Here’s just a taste of what you’ll be missing:
JOSEPH: “In this unexpected “Pulp Fiction” prequel, Vincent Vega’s uncle Carson Phillips (John Travolta), a down on his luck private investigator, must return home to Galveston, TX to help some random woman find her daughter. And in the process, he meets God (Morgan Freeman), Jean Grey (Famke Janssen), and Encino Man (Brendan Fraser).”
If you want to hear the whole review, just head over to patreon.com/onemoviepunch. The whole episode will be available for a few weeks before going back behind the pay wall. You can sign up to contribute monthly at any level. All sponsors get access to exclusive content and will have the opportunity to force me to review one movie of their choice, as long as we haven’t reviewed it, with just a few exceptions. Upcoming content includes a special three-part interview with the filmmakers of “After 82”, a documentary covering the AIDS Crisis in the UK, along with much, much more. All contributions go to paying our expenses and growing with our audience.
As for today’s main episode, we’ll be looking at an important documentary from last year. Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 11/9” may seem like a clever remix on his previous effort for “Fahrenheit 9/11”, and a surprisingly prescient one at that. However, the issues raised in the documentary still remain issues today, perhaps even worse now. I know that many might not like Moore’s work, or his politics, but the content is still important and worth knowing. The film currently sits at an 82% Certified Fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes and a 69 at Metacritic. You can catch the film streaming on Amazon Prime.
Before the review, we’ll have a fun promo for Sponsor Sundays featuring myself and One Movie Spouse. We hope you enjoy it!
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Here we go!
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Today’s movie is “Fahrenheit 11/9” (2018), the political documentary written and directed by Michael Moore. The documentary takes an in-depth look at the United States in the era of Donald Trump, how we got to this point, and what it will take to repair the damage being done on a daily basis, all with Michael Moore’s direct commentary and insightful stunts.
Spoilers ahead.
Let me tell you a story that goes all the way back to 2004, when my daughter was born, and when I was offered a job on the west coast that required me to fly out for an interview. I had previously worked in Los Angeles as a consultant, and that work had lead to this opportunity. I loved flying out, getting the rental car, and driving all the way up to Ventura County to crash at a friend’s place and do the interview. By the way, nailed it. However, instead of turning right around and heading back, I made some plans to head up to Santa Barbara, and found myself driving up PCH, having finished interviewing for a state job, and going to see friends for sushi and craft beer. How does it get any more California back in 2004? Your friends snagging you a ticket for opening night of “Fahrenheit 9/11”, and then having your blossoming progressive mind melt to hear someone who understands the world as it is, not as we want it to be. And the best part of the night was heading back with said friends, getting a few bong hits in us (illegal at the time, I know!), and discussing the general mess the country was in, heading towards an important election. Once we moved out to California full time, I was motivated to get involved in local politics and community, a decent part of the reason being that film. I was so stoked to see his future movies, and wondered if he would do a sequel of sorts, but dear God, I never imagined it would be like this.
I honestly believe we’re a little too far down the nationalism hole right now for this film to have the necessary effect to turn the ship around. Moore does a whole segment comparing the build-up to Nazi Germany and comparing that to actions being taken in the United States. I especially loved having Trump’s speeches lip-dubbed to Hitler’s recorded speeches, showing how nationalist our rhetoric has become. The problem is, we’ve spent so much time calling the other candidate Hitler that we refuse to admit it’s happening right before our eyes. Politically motivated shootings, open racism in the streets, militarized police forces, families being separated and placed into internment camps, public shaming of abuse victims, and threats of civil war. And it’s all happening from or with the backing of one section of the populace, waving the flag like a call to arms. I was naïve to think it couldn’t get worse than George W Bush, even as my older friends smirked when I said it. Is it an unfair comparison? I don’t think so at all, or at least I have yet to hear good explanations for all the extremely shady shit happening in our name.
Now, it’s not a perfect documentary by any means. It’s actually more like a videologue of how much things have changed in the last two years, including the absolutely dismal performance of the Democrats at the polls based in part on their internal divisiveness, how Trump came to power despite everything, the threat he continues to pose, and how it relates to the still unresolved Flint Water Crisis. But it also captures glimmers of hope among the wreckage, including the nationwide organizing by teachers beginning in West Virginia, the nationwide organizing by women for multiple marches, and the inspiring work of the high school students who vowed to end school shootings after one happened to them. It also shows candidates who stand on principle taking seats away from establishment politicians in both parties, in a belated attempt to retake the electorate. The ending includes the footage from Emma González’s powerful silence, but much like yesterday’s film, I think more specific direction is warranted, especially if the threats are as dire. But in today’s case, I actually kind of admire another old white guy recognizing that in many respects, he just needs to get out of the way to let the people already doing the heavy lifting to continue organizing. Tell me where to be to fight back, and I’ll be there. So should all of you.
“Fahrenheit 11/9” (2018) is Michael Moore’s videologue from the past two years, containing an overview of the carnage caused by the current administration, how we got there, and the people fighting back against encroaching fascism. It may not offer direct answers, but it does paint a vivid picture of the last two years, and a warning for the next two years. Michael Moore fans will definitely enjoy this content, but I suspect most folks will find difficulties with the politics or for the reasons we’re in this mess. Also, a farewell to any of the last conservative fans of the podcast. I’m sure if you weren’t tired of my political and social ravings, you will be now.
