Overture Films and
Paramount Vantage have announced that Oscar-winner
Michael Moore‘s new documentary feature will be released domestically on October 2, 2009. The as-yet-untitled film will explore the root causes of the global economic meltdown and take a comical look at the corporate and political shenanigans that culminated in what Moore has described as “the biggest robbery in the history of this country” – the massive transfer of U.S. taxpayer money to private financial institutions.
On this, the 20-year anniversary of his masterpiece Roger & Me, Moore returns to the issue that began his career: the disastrous impact that corporate dominance and out-of-control profit motives have on the lives of Americans and citizens of the world. But this time the culprit is much bigger than General Motors, and the crime scene far wider than Flint, Michigan.
Says Moore:
“The wealthy, at some point, decided they didn't have enough wealth. They wanted more — a lot more. So they systematically set about to fleece the American people out of their hard-earned money. Now, why would they do this? That is what I seek to discover in this movie.”
Moore's new documentary, his first since 2007's widely-praised
Sicko, was first announced by Overture and Paramount Vantage International in May 2008 at the
Cannes Film Festival and production began shortly afterward.
Chris McGurk and
Danny Rosett, Overture's CEO and COO respectively, previously worked with Moore when they oversaw the release of Bowling for Columbine at MGM/United Artists.
“Everyone can relate to this subject matter and all have been affected,” said McGurk and Rosett. “We think there should be plenty of people interested in hearing Michael's take on how exactly we got here and what we can do to move forward.”
John Lesher, President of Paramount Film Group, added,
“Michael is a master at capturing the most timely and critical issues shaping our world today. His unique, thought-provoking method of filmmaking is sure to bring dynamic insights into the state of the global economy that will have mass appeal to audiences worldwide.”
The release date is a year and a day after the United States Senate voted to hand Wall Street a $700 billion bailout.
Moore has made three of the top six highest-grossing documentaries of all time including Cannes Palme d'Or winner Fahrenheit 9/11, 2008 Academy Award(R) nominee Sicko, and
Bowling for Columbine, the Academy Award(R) winner for Best Documentary in 2003. His debut film was 1989's groundbreaking Roger and Me. Moore also created the Emmy-winning TV show, “
TV Nation,” and the Emmy-nominated show, “
The Awful Truth,” both of which featured his trademark style of presenting serious documentaries in humorous and engaging ways.
