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Roger & Me (1989)

Roger & Me (1989)
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Michael Moore's wickedly iconoclastic documentary was inspired by the decline and fall of Flint, Michigan. Once the site of a thriving General Motors plant, Flint went quickly to seed when GM decided to close down and move out. As Moore pokes around what has been described by one magazine as "the worst place to live in America", he finds out how the local populace is coping with GM's betrayal of the American Dream. Among those visited are a family who is evicted just before Christmas, and an enterprising middle-aged woman who set up a thriving business slaughtering and skinning rabbits. Never feigning objectivity, Moore contrasts the impact of the shutdown on the average Joes and Janes with the diffident reaction of Flint's power elite. The latter's patronizing attitude towards the unemployed multitudes is succinctly captured in the scenes in which visiting celebrities Robert Schuller, Anita Bryant, Bobby Vinton and Pat Boone exhort the citizenry to grin and bear it. Even more out of synch is "Miss Michigan" Kaye Lani Rae Rafko, who in her morale-boosting speech to the disenfranchised GM employees begs them to pull for her in the upcoming Miss America pageant! The film's throughline is Moore's futile effort to locate GM chairman Roger Smith, so that he can show Moore first-hand the utter devastation of Flint. Roger & Me is very funny, but it is the gallows humor of soldiers about to embark on a suicide mission. In 1992, Michael Moore more or less updated Roger & Me with his half-hour short subject Pets or Meat: The Return to Flint. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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Director(s):
Michael Moore
Theatrical MPAA Rating:
R
Format(s):
DVD
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Synopsis of Roger & Me

Michael Moore's wickedly iconoclastic documentary was inspired by the decline and fall of Flint, Michigan. Once the site of a thriving General Motors plant, Flint went quickly to seed when GM decided to close down and move out. As Moore pokes around what has been described by one magazine as "the worst place to live in America", he finds out how the local populace is coping with GM's betrayal of the American Dream. Among those visited are a family who is evicted just before Christmas, and an enterprising middle-aged woman who set up a thriving business slaughtering and skinning rabbits. Never feigning objectivity, Moore contrasts the impact of the shutdown on the average Joes and Janes with the diffident reaction of Flint's power elite. The latter's patronizing attitude towards the unemployed multitudes is succinctly captured in the scenes in which visiting celebrities Robert Schuller, Anita Bryant, Bobby Vinton and Pat Boone exhort the citizenry to grin and bear it. Even more out of synch is "Miss Michigan" Kaye Lani Rae Rafko, who in her morale-boosting speech to the disenfranchised GM employees begs them to pull for her in the upcoming Miss America pageant! The film's throughline is Moore's futile effort to locate GM chairman Roger Smith, so that he can show Moore first-hand the utter devastation of Flint. Roger & Me is very funny, but it is the gallows humor of soldiers about to embark on a suicide mission. In 1992, Michael Moore more or less updated Roger & Me with his half-hour short subject Pets or Meat: The Return to Flint. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Theatrical Feature Running Time:
90 mins

Complete Cast of Roger & Me


Director(s):
Michael Moore
Writer(s):
Michael Moore
Producer(s):
Michael Moore
Theatrical MPAA Rating:
R(Not For Children, Violence)
Categories:
Independent Films, Documentary, Special Interest
Roger & Me Awards:
  • 1988 - Los Angeles Film Critics Association - Best Documentary
  • 1989 - National Board of Review - Best Documentary
  • 1989 - New York Film Critics Circle - Best Documentary
Warning:  This product is intended for mature audiences only. It may contain violence, sexual content, drug abuse and/or strong language. You must be 17 or older to purchase it. By ordering this item you are certifying that you are at least 17 years of age.

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    Andrea P.

    As with all his later films, Michael Moore opens and closes "Roger & Me" with a bang. He knows how to grab your attention from start to finish, with wonderful camera shots, dialogue and commentary that make an impact. Love him or hate him, he is the best at making films that provoke a strong reaction. "Roger & Me" is interesting, funny, satiric, sad and always thought-provoking. Moore never pretends to be neutral; he is not an anthropologist. Indeed, he is a filmmaker with an agenda, and in "Roger & Me" he makes his point vividly, sometimes by emphasizing the foolishness or outrageousness of his interview subjects (or merely making them seem foolish or outrageous). While some may call this propaganda, I call it art, because Moore condenses every interview to the essential nitty-gritty. I wish all docu-mentaries were as succinctly educational and entertaining as "Roger & Me", which I recommend highly.

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    Owen L.

    It's the least ambitious of Michael Moore's films, to make a huge understatement. At the time, he was virtually unknown. It is also the most personal of his works. It's a portrait of the city he loves, decimated by the departure of the auto industry, through the lives of ordinary people doing (or being driven to do) extraordinary things to get by. It's what he does best: showing the irony and absurdity in how working class people are treated, the callousness of the wealthy, the dark contrast between the two, and the righteous anger that compels confrontation with the ultimate decision-maker.

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    Randy R.

    Compelling, heartwrenching, brilliantly humorous, inspiring documentary by Michael Moore whose courage and caring challenge all of us to make the world a better place. The final juxtaposition between Roger Smith's plastic speech, a choir singing "Halleluja", and a family being evicted from their apartment on Christmas eve is heartbreaking. An important documentary!

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