Promoting Gun Control in Bowling For Columbine

The Techniques of Michael Moore in Bowling For Columbine to Present the Message on Gun Control

Michael Moore has used several successful techniques in Bowling For

Columbine to present a provocative message on gun control in America.

These techniques are composed of visuals, sounds, editing, interviews,

political messages and many more.

Camera work is used in a manipulative way in Bowling for Columbine.

There is a purpose for every camera angle used in the documentary. For

example, a close up shot is taken in an emotional scene, as it would

enlarge characters’ facial expressions, which then would stir stronger

feelings intended for the audience. This can be seen in the scene

wherein Michael Moore comforts the sobbing headmistress of a school in

Flint, Michigan where the young student Kayla Rolland was shot dead by

a schoolmate. The camera zooms into the scene showing details of the

sobbing headmistress, which evokes sympathy from the audience.

There are montages of shocking and violent images such as for instance

Louis Armstrong’s What a Wonderful World, which illustrates American

hypocrisy and double standards in foreign policy. The montage paints a

forceful idea of bullying and ridiculousness. The general idea of each

point is something like "1942 - America allies with Russia to kill

Nazi's.... 1955 - America fears Russia killing Americans." Few people

would ever accept this as a point of American policy’s ridiculousness,

so Moore uses instances less familiar with the public to make the same

"this is what we did then, and look what happened - America has all

these peoples blood on its hands" point that he eventually uses to

bla...

... middle of paper ...

...s left to thinking that

Charlton Heston is insensitive, ignorant, racist and foolish. What

Michael Moore did was set Charlton Heston up in a series of traps with

dishonest presumptions that he has already tricked his audience with.

The viewer, bringing these presumptions with them into the scene, gets

a nasty impression of Heston’s comments.

Michael Moore has used these techniques effectively succeeding equally

well in presenting the message on gun control/violence in America.

Although some may argue that there are a lot of lies behind the

“facts” that Moore uses to prove his ideas, he is skillful enough that

some of the readily- impressionable viewers don’t realize that they

are being fooled. Therefore, he has successfully persuaded the

audience about the lacks gun control policy in America and its

consequences.