Sicko (2007)
Average Rating: 7.7/10
Reviews Counted: 211
Fresh: 194 | Rotten: 17
Driven by Michael Moore's sincere humanism, Sicko is a devastating, convincing, and very entertaining documentary about the state of America's health care.
Average Rating: 7.4/10
Critic Reviews: 50
Fresh: 45 | Rotten: 5
Driven by Michael Moore's sincere humanism, Sicko is a devastating, convincing, and very entertaining documentary about the state of America's health care.
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Average Rating: 3.8/5
User Ratings: 249,445
Movie Info
After exploring the predominance of violence in American culture in Bowling for Columbine and taking a critical look at the September 11th attacks in Fahrenheit 9/11, activist filmmaker Michael Moore turns his attentions toward the topic of health care in the United States in this documentary that weighs the plight of the uninsured (and the insured who must deal with abuse from insurance companies) against the record-breaking profits of the pharmaceutical industry. Moore interviews a number of
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All Critics (211) | Top Critics (50) | Fresh (194) | Rotten (17) | DVD (18)
There's plenty of grandstanding, most of it very funny. And in this instance, all that sizzle is selling the steak.
Top CriticIf Moore is using his aw-shucks attitude to articulate a collective anger with such far-reaching effectiveness, tolerating his shtick is the least we can do.
If other countries can provide their people with universal health care, why can't we? If we can't, who are we?
Though the focus occasionally strays, the film emerges as a fascinating exploration and powerful indictment of a pressing national problem. This is Moore's biggest, best and most impassioned work.
'Sicko' is a quieter, more focused and less feral beast than its predecessor, 'Fahrenheit 9/11', but that's not saying much.
One may quibble with Mr. Moore's anecdotal oversimplifications and his xenophilic fantasies, but he has struck a socio-psychic nerve in the body politic, generating a feeling of outrage that seems to be reverberating in every theater.
Equal parts laugh-riot and call to arms.
In trying to decipher how Michael Moore has achieved his widespread popularity in the face of a somewhat cavalier attitude toward factual precision, there's no underestimating his savvy choice of targets.
Though his politics are unmistakably left, the documentarian's targets are almost exclusively the powerful and his work is fueled by optimism rather than cynicism.
More humble than Fahrenheit 9/11 and as enthralling as Bowling For Columbine, Sicko is another target hit square on the nose for America's premier documentalist.
Soon we realize that Sicko hinges not on what Michael Moore is uncovering, but on what he's hiding. This is a real shame as he's a talented documentary maker.
While much of Sicko is certainly propaganda, that should not deter anyone from seeing it or giving some credence to what Moore is saying, because what he is talking about is very real and very important.
Saddening while it still bristles with satire, "Sicko" does dodge some of the larger political questions about healthcare reform. Plus, the Cuba stunt mars what is, up to that point, a relatively stunt-free film.
Moore depoliticizes the health care crisis by humanizing it, and drops the polemic in favor of a plea: for us to care about each other a little more.
By now, it should only matter that Moore has been right about every social ill he's addressed.
ranks among [Moore's] best
Laughs are thin on the ground, but this is a must-see by a film-maker at the height of his powers.
The body politic deserves a finer thermometer than Michael Moore's camera
Michael Moore takes on the US health care system. His in your face style may annoy some people, but he lets you know he's in favor of socialized medicine and, to be fair, he wisely presents AMA spokespersons, doctors and others who claim put health care i
Maybe the film will cause a momentary stir and then fade, like Moore's other efforts, because the sickness is not just in the health-care industry but in the system as a whole.
Sicko is an interesting film with a lot of very important things to say.
The priorities are humane by default, and he's strong on testimony from people who've been chewed up and spit out by our system -- and not just patients.
For the first time, the targets of Moore's film need not fear the bearded, heavyset man; instead they should be worried about his audience.
...primarily comes off as an uneven effort that's sporadically as superfluous as it is interesting...
Moore's mere presence becomes politicizing, but this film attempts to make people realize the health of people in this country should have nothing to do with income and politics.
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This documentary could have been much better, and from the outstanding reception from most critics, I expected it to be engaging, thorough, and informative. Surely, it was informative; in no way was it thorough; and I was only engaged for the first thirty minutes or so. If this airs on television, watch the first thirty minutes. They sum up the whole movie, and thatâ(TM)s all you really need to watch to get the gist of what Michael Moore is attempting to convey. In short, SICKO would have been absolutely engaging, thorough, and informative as a mere short documentary.
(Was Michael Moore joking with the tagline of this film: "This Might Hurt A Little"?)