Review: THIS DIVIDED STATE Rating: high +1 (-4 to +4) or 6/10
Mark Leeper
(a film review by Mark R. Leeper)
CAPSULE: Steven's Greenstreet's documentary of the
political firestorm created when Michael Moore was
invited to speak at Utah Valley State College shortly
before the 2004 election. The state is overwhelmingly
Republican and Orem City, Utah, was overwhelmingly
against allowing Moore to speak. The film covers the
fight that followed and gives a disturbing, if
repetitive, view of the political polarization of the
country. The film criticizes demagogues on both sides
of the issues. Rating: high +1 (-4 to +4) or 6/10
Orem City, Utah, calls itself Family City, USA. In a state that
is 75% Mormon and 92% Republican, it sees itself as representing
Christian and American family values. In September 2004, in
spite of this climate, Jim Bassi and Joe Vogel of Utah Valley
State College invited liberal filmmaker Michael Moore to come to
speak. The speech would be just two weeks before the 2004
election. They could not have expected the size of what happened
next. Large factions of the right wing community mobilized to
protest and to try to prevent Moore from speaking at UVSC. The
organizers had expected some resistance, but were taken by
surprise at the vehemence and fury of those opposing Moore's
visit. The debate becomes one of an angry argument over the
meaning of freedom of speech and the First Amendment of the
Constitution.
A great deal of what the film about is the anger and extremity of
the right wing views in the community. The fears expressed went
to claiming that Moore hated the town and his coming to speak in
order to destroy the community and everything that it stands for.
Leading the charge and really the central figure of the
documentary is Kay Anderson whose arguments are intolerant and
unconstitutional. He assumes that that anyone who disagrees with
him is wrong and simply does not understand the situation, but
adds positively "perhaps someday they will." The conservative
activists bring in Sean Hannity, Fox News commentator, to fight
their cause. Hannity's approach is to hold a public meeting to
discuss the issue in which those who argue for the liberal side
are shouted or booed down or called up on the state and put on
the spot to represent the entire liberal cause.
The rough-edged narrative spends its first hour on the firestorm
before Moore's speech. Stylistically the film is a little
irritating. It has it repetitious with Anderson presenting the
same views over and over. In addition, the film keeps returning
to one participant whose only qualification for the attention
seems to be that he has a strong physical resemblance to Michael
Moore. In the final half-hour when Moore himself is present in
Orem City, the film takes an ironic twist. This speech which so
many fought so hard for and against is one of astounding banality
and almost totally lacking in substance. He praises the courage
of the committee that invited him. He thanks the people in the
audience who had served in Iraq and promises that the Democrats
will bring the soldiers home. He tells the audience that they
have just two more weeks of George Bush as President. Moore's
speech is less a discussion of the issues and more a pep talk
given in a state where it would be unlikely to do any good.
Moore seems totally unable to give a speech worthy of the effort
and the fighting that was necessary to bring it about. We see
indignant Nader-ites ejected from the auditorium for using some
of the same techniques that Moore would use. And as the film
wryly points out, Moore endorsed Ralph Nader in 2000. Then Moore
leaves UVSC with the brouhaha over his speech still going on.
The real heroes of the story are Bassi and Vogel who originally
invited Moore, who stood up to the criticism, and who were left
with lawsuits against them after Moore had left.
This is a film with many surprising ironies and the agitators on
both sides look bad in the end. This film is a sobering look at
what the entire political process has become and is becoming. It
rate THIS DIVIDED STATE a high +1 on the -4 to +4 scale or 6/10.
Mark R. Leeper
mle...@optonline.net
Copyright 2005 Mark R. Leeper