Product Details

• Actors: Michael Moore, Gideon Evans, Flip Benham, Charles Kernaghan, David Ryzman
• Directors: Michael Moore, Linda Mendoza, Tom Gianas
• Writers: Michael Moore, Annie Cohen, Francis Gasparini, Henriette Mantel, Jay Martel
• Format: Box set, Color, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 3
• Studio: Docurama
• VHS Release Date: October 31, 2000
• Run Time: 285 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00004WGSA
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #390,341 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

From the acclaimed filmmaker who brought you Roger & Me comes the most daring documentary show to hit the American Public since Moore’s TV Nation: THE AWFUL TRUTH

Michael Moore, hailed by the New York Times as a modern-day Mark Twain, is at it again with the show that was shut down by the mayor of NYC, got Moore sued by a wealthy industrialist, and landed his Corporate Crime-Fighting Chicken in Disney World’s very own jail.

Shot in his signature "guerilla video" style, each half hour episode is filled with scathingly funny observations that bridge comedy and controversy and places Moore in the middle of today’s hot topics.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

60 of 67 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars American Satire at Its Best, October 22, 2000

By 

Jason N. Mical (Bellevue, WA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Awful Truth - The Complete First Season (DVD)

"The Awful Truth" is Michael Moore's unofficial follow-up to the groundbreaking "TV Nation" show that ran in 1995 and 1996. Available only on Bravo for Yankees and on Channel 4 in Merry Olde England, this DVD set will satisfy any fan wanting more of Moore.

This first season was 12-30 minute shows, with Michael taking on people like Humana Insurance, who "decided it was cheaper to kill people than to heal them," the Swiss Banks (he dressed a guy up as Hitler to withdraw the Nazi gold taken from the teeth of Jews), the "Teenaged Sniper School," where he teaches kids how to kill better in school-shooting situations, and more. A progressive television show is refreshing enough, but when you put a satirist like Moore at the controls, who knows what is going to happen - except that it is funny, depressing, maddening, and educational all at the same time.

His techniques are about as subtle as a brick through the window, but let's face it, Americans need more bricks, because there are too damn many "awful truths" out there right now. There are too many companies that think they can get away with murder, too many politicians that think they can play us like harps. Without people like Michael Moore and shows like "The Awful Truth," they just might get away clean.

I can wholeheartedly recommend the first season of "The Awful Truth" to anyone who wants to learn about what is really going on in the US today.

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Funniest thing I have seen in 20 years, June 29, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The Complete Premiere Season of The Awful Truth [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I laughed so hard at "The Awful Truth" that I seriously thought I might hurt myself! It is THAT funny!

Descriptions of lying politicians being chased by Puritans screaming "Repent! Repent!" and a choir of Christmas carolers (who have lost their vocal cords due to cigarette smoking) serenading workers at tobacco company headquarters don't quite do this video justice. You have to see it to believe it. And then you will want to show it to EVERYONE you know.

The "Sodomobile" portion of this tape may well be the funniest and most wonderful thing ever put on film or videotape. Bravo to Michael Moore - if he never made another film in his life he would deserve Sainthood for this one. He is a comic genius with a heart and a clear head for political satire.

30 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars entertaining and truthful, May 5, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Complete Premiere Season of The Awful Truth [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I've been a Michael Moore fan for awhile now. I've watched The Big One and TV Nation repeatedly during times when corporate media begins to bore me and I need a dose of reality. As others have said, The Awful Truth is more of the same. Its definitely not for those who have a Disney-esque, G-Rated view of the world we live in. Honestly, though, I found The Awful Truth to be more difficult to watch than his earlier works. Moore is still sarcastic, funny and extremely unapologetic for revealing what he believes to be true. This is what I admire about him. Yet, there are many situations he addresses where even humor can't disguise the injustice and outright inhumanity our society is blind to. I was excited to see the scenes about the Christmas carolers who went to Phillip Morris and about the funeral rehearsal staged in front of an HMO after reading the editorial reviews listed on this site. I was in for a shock when instead of laughing as I usually do at Moore's antics, I was crying for its victims: the man who needed a pancreas transplant and his 4 year old daughter and cancer striken, voice box dependent carolers. I think the Awful Truth reveals a Moore who is angry and more biting than I've seen him before, but who wouldn't be when the truth is exposed? There are happy endings to these episodes...I can't wait to see what the next season holds in store.