Love Missile F-11, or was that F9-11?
Friday night, I saw Fahrenheit 9-11 at the Merriam Cinemark. Oddly enough, I went to the 10:15pm showing in theater ... 11.

Amusing point: Next door, theater 12 showed "White Chicks". As I, and many others waited for the previous showing of F9-11 to end, several people walked past us to enter the theater showing "White Chicks". They deserve everything bad that comes their way.

I attended the sixth showing of F9-11 on that screen for the day. It didn't sell out; I don't think any movie showing at 10:15pm sells out, but a substantial crowd showed up. I'm fairly certain I'm not old, but 90% of the people in attendance seemed five to ten years younger than me.

The crowd politely applauded the opening credits, and Ben Affleck's "appearance" received the first laugh. The biggest laugh, and applause, appropriately came at the end, when President Bush fumbled the famous "fool me once" proverb. I never get tired of that.

Laughs: Wolfowitz spitting on his hand; President Bush explaining what he did on summer vacation; the brief "Cocaine" riff over the shot of Bush's medical records; Peace Fresno's love of cookies; Afghanistan, in the style of Bonanza; Ambushed Congressmen; Taliban sympathy for the husband of an outraged woman; Smoke 'em out of their holes!

Gasps: Injured soldiers at the Walter Reed Army Hospital; injured and dead children in Iraq.

The Biggest Cheer: John Ashcroft losing the 2000 Missouri U.S. Senate seat to the deceased Mel Carnahan.

The Only Time I Jumped: Two soldiers inspect the bushes next a palm tree in Iraq. An improvised explosive detonates next to them.

Points Left Out: If the Saudis wanted to inflict catastrophic damage on the United States, all they should do, and do it legally I might add, is withdraw all their investments. They stood nothing to gain from the 9-11 attacks.

I'm not surprised that Mr. Moore doesn't mention Israel. The film never would've made it to theaters if he had. Israelis were the ones seen cheering the collapse of the WTC towers. Israelis reportedly had advance warning. Israelis have been busted in mysterious situations around the country (moving trucks, art students, all with puzzling cargo). Israel had everything to gain from making someone else fight their enemies, and profiting in return. Even the Mossad intelligence agency has gone as far as to impersonate al-Qaeda members.

Also, the 9-11 attacks themselves, which Moore barely touches. He focuses on President Bush's improbable reading of "My Pet Goat" after the planes hit the towers, which is a must. But why did it take over an hour to get any fighter jets in the air? These planes deviated wildly from their courses, and even before 9-11, if a plane ventured 10-15 degrees astray, an escort appeared rapidly, asking for identification. And how about the collapse of the towers themselves? Firefighters reported very little fire burning as they ascended the towers. Jet fuel burns fast, and not nearly hot enough to melt the supports. No one has ever answered as to why the collapse of all the towers looked like perfect demolitions. As far as the hijackers, many families reported their sons alive and well after 9-11. But investigators managed to find pristine passports very quickly in the rubble. They identified the hijackers even quicker - on the same day. Some identities were stolen. The questions could go on and on.

Overall, I liked this film. It's a good anti-war message, and a scathing indictment of the true intentions and general incompetence of the Bush Administration. It misses the point on 9-11, but it does enough to convince people that the government lied about the war in Iraq. People will start asking questions about other historical events, 9-11, and before.