Ill Communication: NG Magazine Reviews Sicko

2007-10-29 10:05:10

Controversial documentary director and producer Michael Moore is at it again with his latest film Sicko, which looks at the state of America’s health care system. And, true to form, his findings are far from sympathetic to the American regime.
    
Moore goes on a one-man crusade across the United States, visiting those willing to share their devastating stories about having health insurance but losing everything due to loopholes in a system that focuses on making and saving money at human cost, forcing people to pay for all or part of their care.
    
What initially seems like a mundane topic is brought to life by Moore’s dry and sarcastic tones. He visits Britain, France and Canada, revealing how their government-run health services provide free care for all – but it is not of the diminished standards that American citizens have been led to believe. The use of ironic excerpts of anti-socialist propaganda hammers this point home in a light-hearted but highly critical way, highlighting the ignorance of believing such nonsensical information.
    
The mood is particularly jovial when Moore visits London, with patients laughing at him when he poses questions regarding medical insurance and payment for treatment. These scenes are uplifting to watch, yet poignantly different from those showing the suffering endured by his compatriots. And it is this juxtaposition between the free health care systems found elsewhere which makes Sicko such a powerful and emotive film, contrasting immense human suffering on the one hand with joyous, carefree attitudes on the other.
    
For Moore, the grass is certainly greener on the other side and a sense of American injustice is massively felt throughout. We are presented with hard facts about members of congress being paid-off by insurance and drug companies, giving them total control over the country’s medical practice and thus the power to charge what they want for their services.
    
Such a profiteering system, which has ruthless disregard for the well-being of American citizens, is unequivocally villified in the film by the way it treats a group of 9/11 volunteers suffering the effects of the ground zero rescue effort. Moore ships them to Guantanamo Bay in search of much-needed medical attention which is free to inmates, stressing in no uncertain terms the hypocrisy of the American government’s stance on health care.
    
Overall, Sicko is an extremely provocative film which will no doubt spark debate for days and weeks to come. Yes, it is an idealistic portrayal of the merits of a government-run service: Moore omits to report any of the failings of Britain’s NHS, with no mention of long waiting lists and the like which would undoubtedly weaken his analysis. But these failings were not in the minds of some of the Broadway Cinema’s audience who clapped when the ending credits rolled – a testament to Moore’s persuasiveness. They were also possibly motivated by the relief that if they had an accident on their way home, they would not have to pay thousands of pounds for medical treatment.
    
Sick Boy: Peter Fearn
    

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