13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A symptom of the problem, not the solution, November 5, 2006
This review is from: Forgive Us Our Spins: Michael Moore and the Future of the Left (Hardcover)
FORGIVE US OUR SPINS: Michael Moore and the Future of the Left, by Jesse Larner. FIVE STARS*****
No, this is not yet another demolition job by a petty critic of Michael Moore, exposing to horror his errors and contradictions with the aim of toting up his moral worth. Nor is it a hagiography of Moore as working-class hero.
It is interesting to see Jesse Larner actually defending Moore from various right-wing silliness. Larner agrees with many of Michael Moore's values, perhaps more than Moore himself, because he pays close attention to how well they are served in the changing American climate. But after much research, Larner does not find Moore to be a useful or honest advocate of these values.
Larner is a great story-teller, with a keen eye for telling events and humorously appalling details. Moving along through a hundred compelling and verified incidents, Moore's story unfolds with balance and perspective, and not a single trace of malice. Larner does not rub his hands with glee when he discovers that Moore is an American success story who keeps his place through calculation and a chillingly self-regarding coldness, and that his written and movie work is distinguished not only by playfulness, but by considerable lying and cheating. Up to now, when others have found inaccuracies and willful distortions in his work, Moore has brushed them off as right-wing vilification or says his movies are made to be only entertainment. But Moore makes serious claims for his work; he wants above all to be taken seriously, and Larner grants him his wish more fully than he himself could imagine.
One of the book's charms is that Larner indefatigably informs himself about the subject-matter of each of Moore's movies in turn. He probably knows more about the history of Flint, Michigan than Moore does... and more about how Moore picks and chooses from it. He presents a concise and convincing analysis of the GOP's ruthless theft of the Florida vote; he gives the essence of the Second Amendment and why it does not support indiscriminate gun-toting; and he travels to San Francisco to give us the story of Moore's brief and destructive term as editor of Mother Jones--and to Crawford, Texas (where Moore did not go) to find the Texas citizens who showed "Farenheit 9/11" not far from Bush's ranch, and to explore the environment in which it was received.
Larner argues that, although propaganda and demagoguery pervade the style of the right, and the major TV coverage which the rich and well-connected command, the left simply cannot afford that kind of discourse, either financially or politically. Enjoy Michael Moore's films for the pleasures they bring you, which include a look at events and personages not usually available on TV, but do not assume their absolute factuality, nor look to Moore as a democratic leader. (Moore gave his support, with angry fanfare, to Ralph Nader in 2000.) Liberals must question their leaders and look for those who answer in good faith and candor.
Anyone who has ever wondered why the Democratic Party could not hold the allegiance of a majority of Americans who agree with them on the major issues, not to mention the 9.8 out of 10 who do not share the fortunes of George Bush's major contributors, should read this book with fascination. It is, finally, a history lesson about the workings of American populism, from the point of view of a liberal-leftist who thinks the recuperation of his party is a matter of emergency, possibly of survival. And Larner even-handedly challenges conservatives to question the vicious crackpots who freely roam their side of the debate.
To follow Moore, in Larner's view, is to live in a simple-simon world of unreal simplicities, a religious world, in effect, of the saved and the damned, with a high priest whose ends justify his means. Larner is one of those who addresses himself to the problems of his time with toleration for those who disagree and attention to those who are uncertain. It is that latter group we democratic liberals must convince, not by inviting them to jump on the bandwagon, not by tricking or stampeding them, but by approaching them with respect.
For Larner, the left's connection with Moore only undermines its chances of creating a political climate of freedom, fairness and tolerance. The story he tells is gripping: once he got rolling, I could not put it down. And however I might quibble with a few of his conclusions, he makes it obvious that Moore, whatever else he may be, is a symptom of the problem we face, not its solution.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Emperor's New Clothes, Again, November 7, 2006
This review is from: Forgive Us Our Spins: Michael Moore and the Future of the Left (Hardcover)
When I saw Michael Moore's Columbine, I was made very uneasy by his manipulative use of certain scenes - for instance, his interview with Charlton Heston followed by the elaborately self-serving placement of the photo of a murdered child. And while I certainly agreed with Moore's anti-gun lobby position, I thought his `explanations' for American violence were simple-minded, to say the least.
So it was with interest and a degree of relief that I read Jesse Larner's biography-cum-political commentary - a critique from the left - on Moore and the American left. I'd bet it will stimulate a lot of thinking and discussion among people hungry for a genuine approach to developing progressive American positions.
Larner writes in a fluent, accessible style - and while documenting some of Moore's less savory approaches to both film-making and politics, he maintains an appreciation for Moore's strengths that's a nice counterpoint to the unsubtle and dishonest behaviour he details.
Finally, the book offers thoughtful (though depressing) insights into the current position of the American left.
Susan Berlin
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A troubling look at a complicated man, March 21, 2007
This review is from: Forgive Us Our Spins: Michael Moore and the Future of the Left (Hardcover)
I was drawn to this look at Michael Moore because the author, like me, shares many of Moore's liberal/left views, yet, as the title suggests, he also is bothered by both Moore the person and Moore the filmmaker. I wanted to find out why.
Larner is persuasive in delineating some of Moore's deceptive methods. Example: Contrary to the whole implication of "Roger and Me", Moore did indeed interview Roger Smith of GM - and at length. As Larner suggests, this and other misrepresentations (like the obvious distortion of depicting happy Iraqi children in Saddam's Iraq, pre-war) serve to give ammunition to the Right and detract severely from his cause.
But in the end I was disappointed with this book since it fails to give Moore enough credit for the enormous success he has had in shining light on injustice in our country. At the end, my clear impression was that Larner basically supports our war in Iraq and can't forgive Moore for "Fahrenheit 9/11".
So read this book, if you wish, but then do as I did and also read "Citizen Moore" by Roger Rapoport, another liberal. Rapoport also describes Moore's shortcomings, but he does the great service of quoting both people who know Moore, like Ralph Nader, and Moore himself at great length. He editiorializes very little and lets the reader sort out for him/herself the strengths and weaknesses of this very talented and complicated man.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
