[protected-iframe id=”1bf6ac31c9474d5e385be16ff57c1a1d-60970621-65489996″ info=”https://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1&isUI=1″ width=”650″ height=”400″]
Michael Moore is back at the Toronto Film Festival, where 25 years ago his film Roger & Me debuted and launched his career as a filmmaker (thanks a fu*k-load, Toronto.) He is there to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the film, and bask in the glory of his illustrious career spent basking in his glory. But amidst all the self-congratulatory auto-fellation, he took some time out to sit down with the people at The Hollywood Reporter and let them touch the hem of his garment for a while. It is during this conversation that Michael Moore reflected on Barack Obama’s presidency with all the self-satisfied condescension that he has spent a career honing. Here is an excerpt via The Hollywood Reporter:
“When the history is written of this era, this is how you’ll be remembered: He was the first black president,” Moore said during a discussion at The Hollywood Reporter‘s video lounge at the Toronto Film Festival.
“OK, not a bad accomplishment, but that’s it,” the director said. “That’s it, Mr. Obama. 100 years from now: ‘He was the first black American that got elected president.’ And that’s it. Eight years of your life and that’s what people are going to remember. Boy, I got a feeling, knowing you, that — you’d probably wish you were remembered for a few other things, a few other things you could’ve done.”
Aside from the obvious problem of reducing an unfinished two-term presidency to the color of a man’s skin, the real problem I have with Michael Moore’s statement is that it seems as if he truly believes he is saying something nuanced or profound. It’s the visible smugness and sincerity in his face while he echoes what every right-wing pundit and politician has been saying on an hourly basis for 6 years, as if he has just recently come to a conclusion that the rest of us sheeple are too stupid to realize. Bi-partisan disappointment with President Obama’s White House is nothing new. I even wrote a dick joke about it that I’ve been saying for almost two years, and even I can admit it’s starting to sound a little hacky. Michael Moore’s statement completely epitomizes partisan hackery, and yet he offers it like we’ve all been handed a fancy new liberal perspective on President Barack Obama’s legacy. So thank you, Michael Moore, for your thoughtful and astute analysis of the Obama years. I can’t wait for your next film – Obama: At Least He Was Black.
The Hollywood Reporter
I can smell his farts from here.