ENG-IV

Group 5
Manuel Carrillo

Documentary Bowling for Columbine, (2002)

The documentary Bowling for Columbine was made in 2002 by Roger Moore. He is an
American director and political activist. This documentary is about the weapon industry in
the USA and takes the events from 1999 in Columbine High School, where two students
ran amok and shot 13 people in that school, in order to analyze, why in the USA the death
rate due to firearms in comparison to other developed countries so high is.
The author identifies the issue, though not explicit. He states the weapon industry (e.g. NRA),
the US government and the media work together to create a culture of fear in the US society.
The documentary named some facts, for instance, when the shooting occurred there was the
days when the US government did the heaviest bombing in Kosovo during the Bosnian war.
Mastering level.
Michael Moore considers the influence of context and assumptions. He grew up in Michigan:
A place where the weapon culture is very much spread. That is to say, most of the people
there practice shooting regularly and/or belong to a shooting association. Nevertheless he
questions that culture and try to find out why it is that way. He also compares different
environments (countries). He tries to discern why in one country things happen in one way
and in another country in another way. Mastering level.
The director presents not only his own perspective but also from the other party. At the
beginning of the documentary the interviewed some members from the Michigan Militia. A
sort of shooting association. It is also presented a speech by Charlton Heston, a great
supporter of the 2nd amendment. He was also a member of the NRA (National Rifle
Association) that held a meeting in Littleton one week after the shooting massacre. Littleton
is the city, where Columbine High School is located. Mastering level.
In the documentary are shown some data/evidence concerning the death rates in various
developed countries. The big differences among the US numbers and other countries, e.g.
USA (3,601 deaths/100.000 citizens), Germany (0,466/100,000), France (0,389/100,000), and
so on. Mastering level.
In the documentary a speaker from the company Lockheed Martin was interviewed. He
presented the companys position. The firm condemned, of course, the school massacre and
said that the company wanted to make a donation in order to help adolescents with anger
problems so that they could receive professional treatment. The documentary allows other
points of view that differ from the directors. Mastering level.
The documentary let questions unanswered. It wants the audience answer for themselves. The
question whether the 2nd amendment is something positive for the American people or not.
The question whether the US government through its actions the violence within the
American society promotes or not, e.g. bombings in foreign countries. The question whether

the American media industry through its way of working a culture of fear fosters or not, and
so on. Developing level.
In general terms can be said the documentary does communicate effectively. The language is
clear and communicates ideas in a good way. Sometimes it is nuanced and eloquent, that is to
say, not very formal in order to reach a big audience. Mastering level.