Rating: 
Summary: A man's sad attempt to be "controversial"....
Review: This movie will be well loved by people who are closed minded left wingers. Unfortunately he lost me in his attempts to draw conclusions through truly in-direct premises. Stating that a missile plant has something to do with the absolutely horrific events that took place at the high school is just... well... stupid... He paints the picture that he wants to paint... which is completely biased... The interviews he conducts are all very well planned with the complete intention to try and make the viewer agree with his opinions... The representatives he chooses for his opposition are ignorant and extreme... He takes conversations, events, etc... and very nicely pieces them all together in his own context... I was really looking forward to this movie but to my dismay it was just a pretty piece of propaganda... Well, better luck next time... One piece of advice... if you do watch this, try to watch it using your own mind to form its own opinions...
Rating: 
Summary: You owe it to yourself to see this movie.
Review: Although the title of the movie is "Bowling for Columbine," the Columbine shooting is really just a small part of the larger picture that Micheal Moore paints with this documentary. The movie is not just about guns and violence in the country, but why our country is the way that it is, and what makes America so different that it has the most violence, most prisons, and most number of murders as compared to other countries in the world. I won't reveal what the main message of the documentary is, so that you don't watch the entire thing trying to find it and let various important points pass you by. The documentary is very well made. I never saw "My Life with Mikey" or "Stupid White Men," but this film generated alot of buzz for reasons that will become obvious when one views the film. Moore seems to have a reputation for making "funny" documentaries, but when you watch this you won't be laughing because someone does something hilarious, but because you'll see something so unbelievable that you'll probably laugh thinking "My God, I can't believe you (the people interviewed) can do that/are doing that!" For example, Moore visits a bank that gives out a free gun when you open a special type of account. And I don't mean like a little pistol, but a rifle or a shotgun that you could take a large animal down in very easily. The film also has a number of interesting speakers. My favorite was Matt Stone, one of the creators of South Park, who addresses how the 2 kids in Columbine could have been driven to shoot up their school. Remember, Matt grew up in Colorado as well. They also talk to one of the men arrested in the Oklahoma City bombing (I can't remember the name, but of the 3 guys arrested, he was the only one acquitted.) Moore also talks to people involved directly with the Columbine shootings and another shooting that took place in Michigan (it'll become apparent why he talks to them besides just for documentary purposes.) He also talks to alot of people from Canada and America to get their opinions of each other (what Canada thinks about the US, and vice versa,) and numerous people in the media. As stated eariler though, the theme is not on guns, but on what has made America the gun-happy country that we are, and whether or not us being gun-happy also makes us crime-happy. Although the NRA is painted with a very negative tone in this film, its not from Moore's distortion of the facts, but just from some of the crazy and illogical and insensitive things that the NRA does, like visiting Colorado less than a month after the Columbine shootings. Charlton Heston (who is interviewed on camera) also comes out in a rather negative way, although it seems he becomes apparent of it as the interview ends. Even though this film is well made and addresses some very important issues, its not perfect. It does go off track a number of times, and focuses a little too-much on terrorism in my opinion. It almost seems to say that America is responsible completely for 9/11. Of course, to say that America played NO role in that is ludicrious, but its also ludicrious to say that the perversion of religion wasn't responsible for it either. It also implies that the NRA was born from the desires of the KKK, which, hate the NRA all you want, is still a powerful accusation to make. In the end though, Bowling for Columbine is a very powerful documentary that in my opinion deserves the Academy Award for best documentary, since its obvious that Micheal Moore poured his heart into this film. It is also a documentary that encompasses everyone in our country, from the poor living in poverty to the wealthiest people. You can't leave the theatre/turn off the DVD without thinking about what you just saw, and odds are you'll notice different things about guns, violence, and the media from now on.
Rating: 
Summary: As fair as it could be (or close)
Review: i thought that the documentary was well done because he made it as fair as it could be to gun lovers, and gun control lovers. instead of just giving his opinions, he tried to show facts and evidence that may support or reject various discrepencies concerning gun violence in America. i feel that i could recommend any of my friends to watch it, regardless of their stand on gun control.
Rating:
Summary: It's funny because it's true...
Review: Columbine was very funny, and yet often times disconcerting as well. I truly marvel sometimes at what is wrong with our country, and I find it incredibly refreshing to hear someone not try and finger point to video games or the entertainment industry. There are some pointed observations about the media in the U.S. however, and I have heard lately more than once that in most cases it is less about reporting news and more about making news. Making sure we are aware of all these hidden dangers, carcinogens, syringe filled soda cans (sic), etc. My only reason for withholding that fifth star is I think that sometimes, his methods are suspect. For example, I find it almost unfair the way he treats DIck Clark. The man was late for a meeting, and he comes off as if he couldn't care less. Don't misunderstand, he may not care less, but I feel it was presented in more of a "Ha Ha", in your face way, than seems fair. "There's a lot of wackos out there."
Rating:
Summary: You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll be stunned...
Review: Say what you will about this movie and Michael Moore's agenda, he has made a powerful, powerful film. It is not an anti-gun movie (Moore is apparently a lifetime NRA member). It is more a reflection on American society and the violence which is so pervasive. Canadians have millions of guns and their homicide rate by use of the gun is all but nil. So too many, many other countries -- their homicide by use of the gun dribbles down to almost nonexistent. In America, over 10,000 people per year are killed by a gun. The ol' maxim that 'guns don't kill people, people kill people' is perhaps the theme of the film. The big question is why it is that this country, one espousing such freedom, has such a disproportionate homicide rate. There are moments of high comedy (South Park's history of America is in the film and it is a hoot) and moments of feelings that go deep (footage from Columbine) and moments of great irony (the quote given by an interviewee just before a rather gruesome list (and footage) of America's history of use of bombs is displayed). Moore has assembled a tapestry that amazingly weaves in and around Flint, Michigan (and, oddly, bowling) and he has talked with a great many people, from the creators of South Park (students of Columbine) to Charlton Heston, to the father of a child killed at Columbine to gun totin' militamen from his home state, for a diversity of points of view of the issue. It may seem to some that he is provoking a desired response by his questioning but the reality is that the answers given by those he interviewed speak freely and it is their words, spoken with conviction and sincerity, that ultimately leave the viewer mystified. The interview with Charlton Heston left me speechless. The man who boldly proclaims 'from my dead hands' reveals another side of himself. All in all, the movie is disturbing but it is not brashly so. It merely reveals to us all the various absurdities in the freedom we so cherish. This film should be viewed by everyone who is troubled by the violence in this country.
Rating:
Summary: The point missed
Review: Its ironic the number of reviewers who see this as an anti-gun statement. With as much respect as I can muster they have missed the point, as indeed has Mr Moore. Mr Moore was making an intelligent and insightful essay into the roots of ALL violence in America, but I suspect he got a bit lost when events caught up with him. The irony is, gentle reader, that Mr Moore supplies plenty of ammunition for pro-gun people. For example, he shows clearly that Canadian gun ownership is very high, yet has nowhere the level of gun crime as the United States. Pro- rata New Zealand has as high a gun ownership rate as the US, but has less than 100 gun fatalities a year- and that includes suicides and accidents. So if guns cause crime, surely Canada would have as high a rate as the USA? One fellow interviewed points out that gun ownership as increased, yet the rate of crime has gone down. Again, if the guns were the problem wouldnt you see the increase? One women points out that when your house is attacked why do you call the police? Well, she says it is because they are the ones with the guns. The point is, the film was heading towards making the point that violence is not a single faceted problem, and many factors contribute- maybe music, maybe violent video games, who knows? However, about two thirds through the film, he started to investigate the tragic shooting of a young girl at a school by a six year old boy. Without a doubt, this was a tragic accident, but is it not- and again Mr Moore misses the point- anything more than an accident. Indeed the NRA's own gun safety programmes deal with exactly that situation and isnt it a shame that the boy concerned hadn't seen it. Previous reviewers have focused on the guns, and not looked at the other points the film have made, such as the dig at US foreign policy. Indeed Mr Moore makes that point, showing that on the day of the columbine shooting there were heavy US airstrikes. Dealing with that suddenley seemed too hard, and he pulled the film back to a superficail argument- ban the guns and suddenley everything is hunky dorey. Be warned that much of this film is not for the squimish. You will see numerous shootings, and some terrible footage from columbine itself. It is not to be taken lightly. All in all an interesting view of the USA. It is such a shame that Mr Moore didn't control his emotions, and present a more balanced view.
Rating:
Summary: The land of the 'fraid
Review: While Michael Moore often relies on the tabloid techniques of his big media adversaries, what's most impressive about "Bowling For Columbine" is that it's generally a well-researched, well-argued thesis. Moore wants to know why the US has more gun-related homicides than any other Western nation. Surprisingly, he concludes, it isn't only the number or availability of handguns. It's fear. His America is a nation of terrified citizens, haunted by unbalanced media with a relentless daily focus on global and suburban threat, driven to seek refuge in the right to bear arms. Guns and fear are a lethal combination, and the statistics speak for themselves: over 11,000 killings annually, when most other nations don't even make triple digits. Moore's thesis is a surprising one in that it contradicts America's image of brash self-confidence, but the evidence is compelling. There are some wonderful moments in this documentary: Marilyn Manson's surprisingly articulate analysis of why his music is blamed for teen violence and his take on the actual factors which inspire it; a former producer of "COPS" frankly admitting that violence makes for good television; and music guru Dick Clark refusing to even listen to (let alone answer) questions about a welfare worker from one his mall developments. But the real stars are the ordinary people: the police, the teachers, a tearful security expert, the academics, the polticians, and two young survivors of Columbine who, with Moore's help, literally disarm K-Mart. Moore spends plenty of time on the narrative soapbox and edits together some heavily polemical montages, but for the most part he just rolls tape, asks questions, and lets the idiots bury themselves - none more so than Charlton Heston who, when confronted with uncomfortable questions about NRA strategy and his own apparent racism, is left speechless. As the head of a national organization zealously promoting gun ownership, you'd think he'd have some answers. But he just walks away. What a pity the dead can't do the same.
Rating: 
Summary: Not for Thinkers
Review: The 'facts' presented in this movie deserve special attention. The reason for this is that Moore deliberately misleads his audience. For instance, he emphasizes the fact that more than 11,000 Americans die from guns every year. How many of these people were shot by the police while committing a violent crime? He does not say. How many of these people were shot by private citizens while commiting a crime? He does not say. How many of these people committed suicide? He does not say. When anybody uses a gun in self-defense and in so doing protects an innocent life that is a good thing- and makes the case for private gun ownership. Every suicide is a tragedy. But people will commit suicide with or without guns. Moore obscures the facts by citing aggregate data. For evidence, Moore relies primarily on anecdotes that depict illegitimate uses of guns. Sure, there are people who will commit violent crimes. That is why having guns legal is a good idea. Honest people who want an effective means of self-defense need guns, and handguns in particular. Moore interviewed the weirdest gun owners he could find. It is no surprise that, in a country of close to 300 million people, Moore could find five or ten gun owners who were very strange. So what? There are millions of gun owners who are just normal people. Moore took on Charelton Heston in this movie. Heston is just an actor and a spokesman. Moore could have taken on John Lott instead. Lott is a scholar who did a county by county study on guns. What were his results? Private gun ownership leads to less violent crime and makes honest people safer. Of course, not everyone is safer- criminals are significantly less safe when states adopt concealed carry laws. This is what the statistics show. Lott is the leading scholar on this issue. Moore could have interviewed him, but he is not interested in the real facts. Moore contends that fear is the reason for Americas' gun death rate. Supposedly, we are all scared, so we get guns and then as we panick from all of this fear, we shoot each other. He emphasizes the fear that white Americans supposedly have for black Americans. Does he list data from any study or survey? No. He shows us a cartoon instead. Anyone over the age of eight who takes this seriously should seek professional help. He claims that the government is scaring us. He claims that the media is scaring us. He claims that 9-11 is scaring us into shooting each other too. Where is his proof? He has none. He makes these claims without substantiating them. He claims that Canadians, have guns but not fear. How does he prove this? He asked several Canadians. He also found several Canadians who did not lock their doors. Assuming that he did not stage these things, what does this prove? Are we supposed to infer something about entire nations simply because he talked to a couple of people and opened several doors? There is fear at work here. Moore finds the creepiest gun owners to scare us. Moore uses a few tragedies- Columbine and Flint in particular- to scare us. Never mind about the millions of murders, rapes, beatings, thefts, and other crimes that private guns prevent. He uses the absolute worst examples of private gun use and the strangest gun owners to scare us- and then has the nerve to claim that gun violence derives from others who try to scare us. There is more than fear mongering in this movie. Moore is also a shameless demagogue. Moore takes two victims from Columbine to KMART. He does this in order to pressure this company into ending its sales of handgun ammunition. He also shows the father of one who died at Columbine. Never mind about the victims of violent crime in places like NYC and Washington DC. These places ban guns, thus leaving decent people at the mercy of violent thugs. Never mind about the thousands who get murdered or brutalized in these illegal gun/high crime areas. Never mind about the facts. Never mind about the truth. Moore is out to play upon people emotions and fears, and will stop at nothing to do it. He could look at the general statistics on gun ownership and crime, but he prefers to exploit the suffering of two Columbine victims. His aim clearly is to evoke strong emotions while suppressing critical thought. Moore also ignores a major source of violent crime in American. There was an increase in gun violence during the prohibition of alcohol. This gun violence ended when The war on alcohol ended. Now the war on marijuana has gangs shooting it out with each other and the police again. We can end much violent crime and greatly reduce that 11,000+ death statistic figure he cites by legalizing marijuana. Moore ignores this fact. Bowling for Columbine is a shallow and shameless attempt to demagogue the gun issue. He uses selective, misleading, and anecdotal data to provoke fear of guns and anger against gun rights advocates. He evades the strongest advocates of gun rights so as to avoid having to deal with real arguments and data. He flails at straw men because the facts are against him. Moore sets a new standard for shameless demagoguery and misinformation with this movie. In fact, he is so brazen in the way he tries to scare and manipulate his audience that only closed-minded ideologues will take him seriously. Thinking people will see through his charade easily.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding documentary !!!
Review: Bowling for Columbine should be required viewing for every person in the world let alone every "American". The challenge is what will we do about the factual information presented in the film. The very clear, very true explanation surrounding being African-American in America was absolutely 100% true and it was refreshing to see someone say it. I can't wait (unfortunately I have no choice) until I can get my own personal DVD copy to keep & play for some adults and young people that I may be able to influence.
Rating:
Summary: The Best Movie I've Ever Seen!!!
Review: I have never said that about any movie, other than Star Wars before this. The people who whatched this film talked about it for days.
Michael Moore gives an in depth look at guns and violence, in a humerous and serious way.
Do not get caught up in the title, this is not all about the Columbine event. This is not a doom and gloom movie (meaning all sad). This movie is funny and thought provoking.
You will wonder why the entire country was not made to watch this film after watching it yourself.
It'll be the best 2 hours you've ever spent in front of your TV.
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