Clear Sailing For Next Moore Film
The success of "Fahrenheit 9/11" is making Michael Moore's life a bit easier on his next film.
With "Fahrenheit 9/11" becoming the first documentary to cross the $100 million mark at the domestic box office, director Moore expects a smooth path on raising money to make "Sicko," his critique of private U.S. health-maintenance organizations, known as HMOs.
Moore would not provide details but said financing of his next movie was in the works, thanks to "Fahrenheit 9/11," which cost just US$6 million to make.
"Clearly, if you make a movie that has this ratio of how much it costs to its gross, you're going to find an easy time making your next film," Moore said in a conference call with reporters over the weekend.
The idea for "Sicko" stems from a segment Moore did on his "The Awful Truth" TV show, in which he staged a mock funeral at an HMO, for a patient denied an organ transplant he needed to survive. The company relented and paid for the transplant.
Moore, an Academy Award winner for "Bowling for Columbine," said he would have plowed ahead with "Sicko" even if "Fahrenheit 9/11" had not given him new commercial clout to raise money.
"I've never let that get in the way, anyway," Moore said. "Even if this movie hadn't done as well, that movie was going to get made, because I think the American people are clamoring to see the HMOs punished."
Moore's bringing his blockbuster documentary to President George W. Bush's adopted hometown — and has invited the film's star to attend.
When it appeared that no movie theater in the president's home county would show the anti-Bush documentary, Moore promised a copy to the Crawford Peace House, a facility for seminars, meetings, or workshops dedicated to peace.
Moore, on his Web site, invited Bush to attend, saying he wanted a chance to thank him personally for starring in the film. "And let's face it, you've got some of the funniest lines in the film!" he wrote.
A White House representative did not return a call early Tuesday.
A theater in nearby Waco picked up the movie last week, but Moore later offered to come to Crawford to introduce his movie and discuss it afterward.
Organizers expect about 1,000 people to attend the show Wednesday night at a football stadium parking lot; police said demonstrations against the film were also expected.
"I personally think we're just a little town, and it's kind of an invasion in our small town," said Fran Shelton, whose family owns the Crawford Coffee Station. "Everyone's entitled to their opinion, but I'd be happier if he didn't bring it to Crawford."
Moore's condemnation of Bush's actions regarding the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks recently became the first documentary to top the US$100 million mark domestically.