My diagnosis: take sparingly and call me in the morning.
Michael Moore: Himself
George Bush: Himself (archival footage)
Richard Nixon: Himself (archival footage)
Reggie Cervantes: Himself
John Graham: Himself
William Maher: Himself
Linda Peeno: Herself
Written/Directed By: Michael Moore
Release Date: June 22, 2007
Running Time: 113 minutes
Rated PG-13 for brief strong language.
Those who regularly read my reviews know that I strive for neutrality. I don't want anyone's opinion of my views to steer them away. As I perused the articles on Michael Moore's fifth documentary Sicko, I noticed that Moore can stir up controversy and evoke a critic's personal beliefs better and more intensely than any other documentarian. He enjoys doing this because it is his chief strength. My reflections of this film are based on weighing both sides of the coin. Sicko is more than just a statement of the obvious for Americans that our health care system sucks. It educates and enlightens beautifully, but as usual Mr. Moore is anything but impartial.
Moore begins his report with a normal and proficiently laid out thesis, and he shows various Americans who have been denied health care. There is Frank, an elderly man who must work at Pathmark to pay for his medicine. One married couple was forced to move in with their daughter because the father had three heart attacks, and the mother had serious problems as well. Another gentleman had to choose which finger, of the two which were cut off, could be re-attached because he did not have enough money for both. The ring finger cost $12,000, and the middle $60,000. Who prices fingers exactly?
These cases are all tragic, but the one interview that still haunts me emanates from Becky, a health insurance worker who broke down in tears when describing the cruel stress of her job. She knows that certain applicants for health care will be declined it because of pre-existing illnesses and conditions. She can't say anything to them, but she already knows that some happy sounding people will receive a call with bad news. When questioned on what specific conditions cause someone to be denied, Becky says the book is pretty big. A scrolling list right out of Star Wars goes through them alphabetically for us.
Further incidents are examined, such as a group of people who had health care, but when they developed tumors, cancer, or other ailments the Insurance companies sent them a letter detailing why they would not receive treatment. One lady eventually died from her tumor because she was told it wasn't life threatening. Another young woman with cancer had it spread through her entire body. No action was taken with random people because they were not the proper height and weight. Some were either too thin, or too fat. 6 feet, 130 pounds is a bit skinny according to one Insurance Company. The more people that are turned away with nothing, the more companies like Cigna and Blue Shield make money, and in some cases, the person with the highest amount of denied candidates is given a hefty bonus. Facts such as these are definitely scary.
The mood switches gears to focus on Lee, who is known as a “hitman” because he was an employee of the insurance provider that investigates certain cases to find pre-existing conditions, so patients could be deprived of surgery, medicine, and other remedies. He says that a group of people will be devoted to one case, and analyze it intently like a murder investigation until the cash comes back to the company. A great deal of archival footage is displayed. One memorable piece is the testimony of Linda Peeno, a woman who was promoted because she denied a person coverage that saved the company thousands. Moore then explores the origins of the US Health Care systems by playing tapes of Richard Nixon discussing the disastrous policy before it was announced in 1971.
A significant portion of Sicko is spent visiting other countries, and inspecting their universal health care. He tags along with Adrian, a woman who moved and married a man in Canada, where she now has free health care. He also converses with Larry, who underwent an operation that cost him nothing up North, when he would have spent approximately $23,000 in the US. He then travels to England and talks to a doctor, and asks him if universal health care affects his paycheck, which of course, it does not. Moore points the audience towards one area of these foreign countries, and makes them look like Heaven.
One sequence reveals that the United Sates are currently #37 in the world in terms of the quality of health care. France is #1, and Moore strolls around that country as well. He sits down with a gathering of Americans who now reside there. He joins a doctor who rides around in a little car performing house calls. They also have appointed nannies who do their laundry, cook, and so on. He touches the availability of free college education, endless weeks of vacation, and their superb child care. Towards the end of the documentary, Moore takes a group of 9/11 victims to Cuba. Is it really so blissful to live in England, France, Cuba, and Canada, yet so miserable here? No, but for some reason Moore wants viewers to leave with that judgment.
The primary argument made by Moore is the most important facet of Sicko. Americans should have a system that allows health care for everyone. The problem is Moore manipulates his audience in so many ways that it almost overshadows his intent. While he does not illustrate graphs and numbered data like Al Gore did in An Inconvenient Truth, he does twist and bend perception from reality. Nonetheless, he is very funny in his relentless, yet screwy approach, and he transforms a lackluster topic into an entertaining and edifying one. He reduces the emphasis from himself minutely, and his rhetorical comments are intriguing. In his defense, Moore's agenda has admittedly never been unbiased, but at the same time, a change of pace would gain him more respect.
His directorial methods largely resemble Bowling for Columbine, and his past offerings, but he is still effective, with tactics that are occasionally transfixing. If Moore would stop distorting information, and undermining personal accounts, his center message would have been progressively more penetrating. My father had quadruple bypass heart surgery, and from what I observed he was well cared for at the hospital, but I do remember many a trip to the doctor's office, and the emergency room where the wait was hours on end, and the attitude was not inviting. Perhaps you are one of Moore's biggest fans, or maybe you are someone that loathes him. That does not change his outlined purpose of Sicko that the health care system in America is based on greed, clumsy policies, and opposing ambitions. It needs crucial adjustments sooner, rather than later.
Recently, Sicko has leaked onto the internet, causing an outburst from the filmmaker that it was an inside job from the studio, but then he reversed himself and said that the piracy resulted in "the kind of word-of-mouth promotion marketers love." If this wasn't enough to get the masses to notice, Cuba is accusing Moore that the footage he shot was illegal, and they are requesting that he disclose all names and parties involved. Moore is a professional at drawing a crowd, and/or taking advantage of free publicity when is lands on his lap. At this particular juncture of his career though, the extreme conservatives, or anyone else who disagrees with him for that matter, will avoid his films despite any and all headlines.
Certainly this is one of Moore’s least antagonistic entries into his oeuvre, and that can be praised to a degree, but he does agitate the nerves sporadically. Most notably, when he places Mrs. Hillary Clinton center stage, and refers to her as “sexy.” A few anti-Bush tangents are taken here and there. One piece of self-augmentation is conveyed when Moore states he anonymously paid $12,000 to the manager of one anti-Michael Moore website because that individual was forced to close it due to his wife needing money for health care. This was indeed a mission accomplished. As a polemic, Sicko is narrow minded, but as a lesson and a petition, it is enriching, proportionally steady, and worthwhile.
The 411: I kept thinking of The Death of Mr. Lazerescu (2005) during this movie. It would be neat to watch Sicko after that, and compare. At least American health care isn’t as unfortunate as was portrayed in that film. Sicko is obviously flawed, but the main theme is important and convincing. As I write this, I am up to my elbows in counter claim articles on this film, but I stand by my rating. Moore will probably never be anything more than a trouble maker that knows precisely how to make us tick, but he can sure craft an entertaining picture if nothing else. I would not watch this multiple times, but it does make me care more about the subject. This is only a limited release as far as I know, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to see it in the theaters. I see no reason why you can’t wait for DVD.
