Manufacturing Dissent (2007)
Average Rating: 5.3/10
Reviews Counted: 24
Fresh: 13 | Rotten: 11
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: 5.6/10
Critic Reviews: 10
Fresh: 6 | Rotten: 4
No consensus yet.
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Average Rating: 3/5
User Ratings: 2,219
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Movie Info
In an era where fact, fiction, and legend have become increasingly difficult to distinguish, Debbie Melnyk and Rick Caine set out to explore the politically charged climate in America and find out just how documentary director Michael Moore has evolved from a simple filmmaker into an icon of left-leaning politics. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Jul 12, 2007 Wide
Nov 6, 2007
Films Transit International
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All Critics (24) | Top Critics (10) | Fresh (13) | Rotten (13) | DVD (5)
A solid, well-done and seemingly balanced look at Moore's work, his celebrity, his methods and the ethical problems in his reporting.
Top CriticSome of the accusations in this documentary by a pair of Canadian filmmakers who initially set out to make a positive portrait, will make your eyes water.
Too bad co-writers/co-directors Debbie Melnyk and Rick Caine don't investigate -- and ingratiate -- the way their target does in his own films.
Useful but limited muckraking.
Manufacturing Dissent comes across less as an expose of a polarizing public figure than as the realization of a personal and not especially interesting grudge against a once-admired colleague who has moved on to bigger things.
While Manufacturing Dissent provides little that is new, it does place the controversy in the larger context of the contradictory relationship between the pursuit of fame and journalistic integrity.
This even-handed effort simply doesn't probe deep enough.
There's little to disagree with in the thumbnail portrait of Moore that emerges from this entertaining doc.
With a wide-ranging array of interviewees and an amusingly Moore-like approach to its subject, Manufacturing Dissent is an enjoyable documentary, whether you're pro-Moore, anti-Moore or indifferent.
Exposes a paranoid personality, testy with his critics and bullish about his methodology.
Moore's reputation as a brilliant polemicist takes a knock or two, here. But it's still very much upright.
A few serious points against Moore's credibility are overshadowed by a lot of dull posturing, unconvincing argument and unpleasant interviews. It's nothing like as good as the films made by the man it maligns.
The problem in making a documentary about Moore, though, is that it probably won't be as interesting as a documentary made by him, even if his techniques are used.
The big question you have to ask yourself is: do these dishonest work practices actually undermine the message he's trying get across? The answer is probably not... because Moore is already preaching to the converted.
Though much of what's in the film isn't new information, seeing it all compiled in one place and building to its damning argument against Moore is effective and disturbing.
This hugely entertaining documentary turns Michael Moore's filmmaking style back on himself to separate the facts from the rumours. It's not a hatchet job, but Moore doesn't emerge unscathed.
Rarely acknowledges the basic transparency of Moore's films . . . only when [this doc] takes on [Moore's] work does it land its hardest blows. The disc's best special feature is a ten-minute 'Documentary Discussion.'
Audience Reviews for Manufacturing Dissent
Super Reviewer
Moore: Look at those Republicans over there!
Crowd: BoooooO!
Moore: No, let's not boo them. Unlike them we like to hear other opinions!
Crowd: Yaaaaay.
Yikes! I definitely lean more to the left (maybe it's my shoes), but a lot of Moore's speeches remind me of Bob Roberts. I remember feeling tricked when I found out about the untruths in his documentaries, I always considered myself not to follow people blindly, but I seriously feel kinda stupid for buying some of the crap he was dishing out. Did I really think a bank would just hand someone a gun? What the hell is wrong with me? Anyway, because of Moore I now question all documentaries more than I should and take everything said in any "editorial" documentary with a grain of salt, because not only is the view possibly one-sided, but now it could just be a downright lie.
Super Reviewer
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