What do Shrek, Spider-Man, Michael Moore and Harry Potter have in common? They have all produced $100-million movie hits this summer.
Moore’s condemnation of United States President George Bush’s actions regarding the September 11 attacks in the documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 had a weekend haul of $5-million to lift its total to $103,35-million since opening in late June.
The previous best domestic gross for a feature-length documentary was $21,6-million for Moore’s Academy Award-winning Bowling for Columbine. That film took nine months to hit that level, while Fahrenheit 9/11 did more business, $23,9-million, in just its first weekend.
The polarising effects of September 11 and its aftermath, with Americans bitterly divided over Bush’s invasion of Iraq, have boosted the public’s appetite for political documentaries such as Fahrenheit 9/11, Control Room and Outfoxed, Moore said.
”It’s really cool now to talk about politics, and this is the first time I’ve seen this happen in decades, really,” Moore said on Sunday. ”Being apathetic right now is very uncool.”
The real effect of Fahrenheit 9/11 will be to encourage Americans normally disinterested in politics to participate in elections this fall, Moore said.
”I believe the film is going to bring hundreds of thousands of people to the polls who otherwise were not going to vote,” Moore said. ”I think it’s going to have a tremendous impact in that way.”
Moore said he hopes to have Fahrenheit 9/11 out on DVD before the November election, but that the film could continue to play in theatres into 2005. — Sapa-AP