Cherry Picking
Rotten Tomatoes Plot: This is an expansive, rib-tickling, and subversive comedy in which Michael Moore, playing the role of "invader," visits a host of nations to learn how the U.S. could improve its own prospects. The creator of Fahrenheit 9/11 and Bowling for Columbine is back with this hilarious and eye-opening call to arms. Turns out the solutions to America's most entrenched problems already existed in the world - they're just waiting to be co-opted.
For the record, I think Moore is a brilliant filmmaker; but as the great Clint Eastwood once said, "A man's got to know his limitations. Moore's mission in Where to Invade Next? "Pick the flowers, not the weeds." For the first 45 minutes or so, he delights... showcasing the best Europe has to offer (long vacations, no homework) before unleashing a series of liberal rants against the very country I thought he loved so much. We get it: Slavery's bad. Hitler too (and cafeteria food) but cherry-picking great ideas (with no way of paying for them) isn't the answer.
Grade: C+
