Sicko update: An Update from Michael Moore

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SSRI-Research@

Fri, 7 Jul 2006 19:32:20 -0400

[sSRI-Research] " Sicko " update: An Update from Michael Moore

(and an invitation to his film festival)

 

 

 

 

 

Friends,

 

Just a quick note to let you know how things are going.

 

Back in February, I asked if people would send me letters describing

their experiences with our health care system. I received over 19,000

of them. It was truly overwhelming as we literally took a month and

read them all. To read about the misery people are put through on a

daily basis by our profit-based system was both moving and revolting.

That's all I will say right now.

 

We've spent the better part of this year shooting our next movie,

" Sicko. " As we've done with our other films, we don't discuss them

while we are making them. If people ask, we tell them " Sicko " is " a

comedy about 45 million people with no health care in the richest

country on earth. "

 

But like my other movies, what we start with (General Motors, guns,

9/11) is not always what we end with. Along the way, we discover new

roads to go down, roads that often surprise us and lead us to new

ideas -- and challenge us to reconsider the ones we began with. That,

I can say with certainty, is happening now as we shoot " Sicko. " I

don't think the country needs a movie that tells you that HMOs and the

pharmaceutical companies suck. Everybody knows that. I'd like to show

you some things you don't know. So stay tuned for where this movie has

led me. I think you might enjoy it.

 

At this point, we've shot about 75% of " Sicko " and will soon begin

putting it together. It will be released in theaters sometime in 2007.

 

And if you don't hear much from me in the meantime, it's only 'cause

I'm busy working. I realize that my silence doesn't stop the

opposition with their weird obsession for me! It seems like not a week

passes without my good name being worked into some nutty news story or

commentary. (I have to say, though, I did enjoy Tom Delay blaming me

and Ms. Streisand for why he had to resign from Congress!)

 

I hope all of you are enjoying your summer. If you're near the state

of Michigan later this month, I'll be putting on the second annual

Traverse City Film Festival in Traverse City, Michigan. I've

personally selected 60 or so movies that I love, many of which did not

get the notice or distribution they deserved. Others are brand new

independent movies and documentaries that I hope will find a large

audience when they are released.

 

The film festival will take place in this beautiful town in northern

Michigan, from July 31st to August 6th. Appearing in person with their

films will be David O. Russell ( " Three Kings " ), Lawrence Bender ( " An

Inconvenient Truth " ), Terry George ( " Hotel Rwanda " ), Larry Charles

( " Borat " ), plus Jeff Garlin, Jake Kasdan, and other filmmakers. We're

also going to show every feature film made by the greatest American

director of all time, Stanley Kubrick. Joining us in person will be

his executive producer, Jan Harlan, and actors Malcolm McDowell ( " A

Clockwork Orange " ) and Matthew Modine ( " Full Metal Jacket " ). We'll

also be presenting a special salute to films made in Iran (a sort of

" Let's get to know them first this time! " effort).

 

If you'd like to see the entire list of films, Tickets go

on sale today (July 7) at noon. To purchase your tickets (all seats

$7), click here or call 231-929-1506. Last year we had 50,000

admissions, and we expect most films to sell out early this year.

 

Well, that's it for now. Bush has quietly closed down the special

section of the CIA that was devoted solely to capturing Mr. bin Laden,

so we can all rest easy now. I wonder who his next scary evildoer will

be. A fearful nation awaits its marching orders, sir!

 

Yours,

 

Michael Moore

mmflint

 

P.S. Don't forget to visit my website which I update every day with

all the news the Bush stenographers (a/k/a " Mainstream Media " ) fail to

put on page one.