Bowling for Columbine

Inspired by the tragic events at Columbine High School in April 1999 when twelve students and one teacher were massacred, Moore sets out to understand why America has such a love affair with guns and the pathology of violence. He establishes the ease with which any America can purchase and own a firearm by opening a bank account that comes with the incentive of a free weapon for each new customer. Establishing a personal connection to the subject matter allows him to speak with authority as he chronicles and challenges the arguments presented by those who reject any merit in the call for gun control. Mixing archive gems, striking news items, shocking CCTV footage from inside Columbine and feisty interviews, Moore creates a thought-provoking documentary essay in which he plays his familiar role of shambling straight man to the kind of subjects who diminish in the viewer's eyes with every fatuous utterance they make.