Nothing To Hide
by Michael WilsonLast week, I wrote a little missive about why conservatives should stop complaining and start doing. I’d been saying it for years, beginning in 2004 when my movie and I were prematurely and wrongly heralded as the start of the “conservative film movement.” I’d always taken umbrage at that proclamation, because I didn’t see what we were doing back then as a part of any “movement” and, frankly, didn’t (and still don’t) care if people saw it that way.
Also last week, Big Hollywood’s triumphant launch was covered well in the news, because Andrew Breitbart’s idea is newsworthy (and because he’s good at getting the word out). In one article, which appeared in the Daily Telegraph, the reporter subtly chastised the site, and used quotes from me that were entirely out of context. I’m not going to jump all over everyone who does this, because it’s part of making a public statement (I’ve been called every name in the book). But this one bugged me.
Tim Shipman wrote:
“Michael Wilson, director of the documentary Michael Moore Hates America, said Hollywood and grassroots conservatives need to fight harder to “impart their ideas into pop culture” by putting up the money for films that hide a conservative message in a popular format.”
I said nothing of the sort. In fact, I was kind of railing against this sort of thinking. Shipman used the word “hide” very specifically. And it’s the word that bothered me most. I don’t think we should hide anything. And I don’t think anyone should have to hide who they are… right, left, or indifferent. And even though I’m an atheist and libertarian, I don’t want to be identified simply for those belief structures, especially when it comes to my work. I just want to work.
What I was saying in that piece, and what I’ve been saying for years is that if conservatives want to make movies, they should do it. Same with liberals, Muslims, Christians, gays and lesbians, or any other group that wants to be a part of some “movement.” But I’m not going to say, “Wow, what a great Christian movie.” I’m going to say, “What a great movie.”
Or not.
Andrew Leigh, who also posts at this site, reviewed my flick and made a nice analogy about how most people view their “group’s” films the same way they view their kindergartner’s artwork. They hang it on the fridge and say it’s wonderful, but deep down, they know it’s crap. It’s something that’s been very true of “conservative” films. Most of them are terrible.
All I want to say to conservatives who want to make movies is, “Make good movies.” Don’t hide who you are, but make good movies. A new movie I’m working on (you won’t find anything about it online, because it’s TOP SECRET) has nothing to do with politics. Nothing. Not because I have nothing to say about that world, but because political thought doesn’t fit into this flick. It’s a good movie, and I’m not hiding any agenda anywhere within it. Politics remain a part of what drives me, but there’s a lot more there.
I, of course, don’t have control over whether people put me in this or that box. A couple of years ago, someone from CBC called me and asked me if I’d do a satellite interview on a movie where President Bush was digitally assassinated. They asked me what I thought and I said I thought it was kind of a crappy thing to do, but I’d never tell an artist what they should or shouldn’t do. The art, a big, loud magician once told me, doesn’t belong to the artist once he turns it over to the public. It’s theirs to feel on their own. The Canadian Broadcasting Company wanted someone who was “outraged.” They actually told me that. I wished them luck in their search for an angry commentator and hung up, with a new appreciation for how media intentionally pits people against each other.
I made a movie called “Michael Moore Hates America” and so people will probably always identify me as that person. But like the film, it was a point in time when I needed to say that. Today, I want to say something else. In a year, it’ll be something entirely different. And I’ll just be who I am as a filmmaker – an artistic, opinionated guy, interested in many things (including politics) and with nothing to hide.
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24 Comments
Michael, here’s a favorite quote of mine relevant to your post:
“If I had a dollar for every time some paid journalist stated my beliefs or motivations as fact and was wrong, I’d have enough money to hire contract killers to slit the throats of everyone I even mildly dislike.” — author JIM GOAD
Testing
Testing again
Good post, Mike.
The MSM doesn’t treat any conservative without disdain, and conservative filmmakers shouldn’t expect any less.
Mr. Wilson – I wish there were more directors like you out there (and were it not for people like John Nolte and Big Hollywood, Id have thought there werent any at all.) You are so right: it should be about the art of storytelling, because once a story is ‘out there’ it becomes others’ to find something in it. Both sides should take a clue as to that.
ACK! – I didnt finish a sentence (as usual) – I meant to say were it not for [...] Id have never known that there were people in Hollywood who were concerned about simply doing what they do best: crafting a story.
“The art, a big, loud magician once told me, doesn’t belong to the artist once he turns it over to the public.”
It’s OK to drop Penn Jillette’s name. He’s “out” already, after all. He’s been out long before anyone was talking about Big Hollywood or any of this.
I could not agree more with what I take as your main point. I will watch a liberal movie if it is good. I’m a Christian but I’ll watch an “atheist” movie if it is good. What I won’t watch is crap like “Left Behind” even though it purports to reflect my worldview.
I hate being quoted out of context as well Michael because to me it just proves positive what a cowardly fool the person doing it is. Why can’t you use the entire quote? How hard would that be? Oh I know why. And I know where the reasons come from. The same reason the “journalist” quoted you out of context is the same reason why they quote others out of context with whom they agree. They know the quote in its entirety hurts their weak kneed flimsy arguement, which in the end is why they do it. THey do it because they are too lazy to form a coherant rebuttal or because they think they have a gotcha moment. Ridiculous.
Hey Michael,
Speaking of Penn Jillette, maybe you should send him after Mr. Shipman. I seem to recall from your movie that Penn has some pretty strong feelings about someone’s remarks being taken out of context.
I agree with you 100%. We don’t need any more political preaching in our movies, we need good stories. 300 and The Dark Knight were “conservative” movies, but they were great movies because they told great stories, with characters and plot developments that spoke to people’s hearts and senses. And that’s what we need more of.
The same reason the “journalist” quoted you out of context is the same reason why they quote others out of context with whom they do not agree.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I had to edit that line. GRRRRRRRRRRRR
I think the problem for conservatives is threefold.
(1) The media is, by a vast majority, left/far left, as are their friends and everyone in the newsroom. So when they see a movie that promotes a left wing message, they often don’t see the message as political because, to them, it’s not controversial at all — everyone they know accepts it as fact. But when they hear that a filmmaker is a cosnervative, their political antenea go up and they start looking for “propoganda.” And then, every work thereafter, that filmmaker becomes suspect. Conservatives should respond to that by criticizing the doublestandard put in place by the critics.
(2) Many, many conservatives play into this world view by overreacting. Think about how many times you’ve heard about conservatives looking to ban a book or protest a television show for really rather trivial reasons. Conservatives need to loosen up and realize that the people will ultimately make the right decision, so long as the they are given a choice. Trust people, just make sure they have good alternatives to chose from.
(3) Far too many conservatives apparently would rather isolate themselves from the culture rather than become involved in shaping it. And yet, when they do get involved in shaping it, many do so with the idea of either preaching to the choir or outlining a political philosophy. Remember, entertainment is about entertainment first. The best conservative works would be good stories that live in a world where conservative values are treated appropriately, rather than being treated as a disease or as the evil to be defeated by the “hero.” Unless you are doing an overtly political piece (and there is certainly room for such pieces too) there is no read to hide a message, sneak anything past anyone, or even beat anyone over the head with it, just remain consistent to the world as you see it.
The quote the author disliked about “hiding a conservative message in a popular format” revealed more about the journalist than he realized. Liberals have been hiding their message in popular formats for so long, that it probably struck the journalist as the done thing.
Love your observation #2, too much over-reacting in the conservative side of things. As for a practical example of #3, consider life on the Great Plains. Liberals seem to fail here regularly. For a reason; they don’t seem to get that actions have logical consequences. Spend an evening getting lectured to or browbeaten by a liberal, and you stop hanging around with them. You aren’t available to help them when the need it. Life on the Plains is all about helping each other and being helped in turn when you need it. They just don’t get that being abusive or being themselves unhelpful means they don’t have the life they could have.
A story could be written about such a dynamic.
One of the things that drives me crazy is how conservatives are bashed in subtle little ways that are off of the main topic of the movie. In Perfect Stranger for example the female lead a news reporter uncovers a gay sex scandal involving the conservative republican senator from New York. The little side story was just to give the reporter character some cred and demo some electronics that get involved. Why even mention what party the senator was in?
I’ve been reading the Telegraph daily for a few years and I can’t stand Shipman. Also, I had read the article you’re referring to and that exact line jumped out at me. I distinctly remember not liking “hide” and the impression the statement left, only I didn’t bother to see if that’s what you’d actually said or inferred.
Weird, but I should have known since Shipman wrote the story. He’s awful and seems unable to write anything without a manufactured ‘hit’
Andrew, gotta disagree with you on #2. How many conservative “movements” to ban a book or protest a TV show have their actually been? Other than the PTC (who I think go way too far ‘over-the-top’ in their comments and actions), I can’t think of any right-leaning organization that has gone out of their way to push a “boycott” of any thing on television.
The only book bannings I can recall being pushed were mostly by small grass-roots organizations on a very local level. To say that conservatives push for book bannings would be to fall for the left-wing trap of “They’re evil and they’re taking your rights from you! See the Patriot act!” sort of thing.
Michael, I watched your documentary a couple of years ago and I admire your determination to make it happen. I moved to LA a couple of years ago and decided to take a different tack: I’m producing a NON-political documentary first, with the intent of learning as much as I can and making contacts at the same time.
As expected, I have found that nearly everyone I meet – including my own below-the-line staff – are doctinaire leftists. But here’s the surprise: even the most vocal of them show a surprising lack of conviction in their own beliefs – and, surprisingly, they usually are the first to admit it.
A couple of months ago I found myself in Manhattan with half a day to kill – with one crew member who also didn’t have anything specific to do until our gang met up again for the flight out of town. As luck would have it, he was about the most bitter lefty I had ever met – told me that conservatives were stupid, and they were destroying civilization.
He was particularly interested in the WTC site, so I took him there. We discussed the war, the nature of armed conflict, and American military history in general. The guy told me that he knew that he had been exposed to only one point of view for years. By the end of the afternoon, he asked for a reading list. I sent him a Christmas gift: Jonah Goldberg’s “Liberal Fascism.”
I am learning that there are many industry people out there who are willing to open their minds – and I’ve heard over and over that they don’t know exactly where to turn. They’ve been told that Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh, and Bill O’Reilley (who they believe does nothing but scream and yell) represent the entire wealth of modern conservative thought.
This town can (and will) change.
So what’s the big “Secret” Project you’re working on?
“Michael Wilson Hates Sex with Women?”
Mark S: A few points in response…
(1) I am not saying that conservatives in general believe in banning books. Far from it, most conservatives believe in personal freedom and tend to be tolerant of all views. Book banning, speech codes, and groupthinking are liberal diseases. In fact, modern liberalism is far less tolerant of differing views than Hollywood’s cliche of the 15th Century Catholic Church. “Don’t believe in the Almighty Global Warning? Well, Copernicus, thou shall’t be terminated and blacklisted from the field of science…”
(2) That said, unlike liberals, the media lumps conservatives together with any fringe idiot the media can find. It’s unfair, but that’s life. What this means, is that we need to be much more vocal about disassociating ourselves from these idiots.
(3) And idiots there are. There have been a great many demands by self-described conservatives to ban or limit one thing or another. Sometimes they seek outright bans, sometimes they want the FCC to punish, sometimes they propose boycotts, etc. They never succeed, except in making us look intolerant and stupid. Examples: dungeons and dragons leads kids to satan, Harry Potter promotes witchcraft, the Simpsons promote disrespect to parents and teachers, OMG you could see Janet Jackson’s breast if I froze the picture and went frame by frame, “pro-homosexual material” should not be distributed in public libraries, etc. etc. Conservative grassroots groups routinely work together to get porn shops banned (through clever zoning), keep certain books from school and public libraries, and organize boycotts of certain films.
This stuff is garbage, let it fail on its own lack of merits!
More disturbingly, “conservative” politicians routinely stir up their base with attacks on elements of popular culture, with the implicit (or explicit) idea that a vote for them will result in an end to such garbage. Murphy Brown anyone? Even Al Gore played that game — record labels, WTF? This blows back on all of us. When you speak up about the culture, how long does it take for someone to accuse you of being a disciple of Dan Quayle?
(4) Finally, please don’t get lost in the example. Book banning is an extreme example but there are many smaller examples. When I was in college, I studied with a bunch of conservatives who went on to work on Capital Hill. These kids sat around bragging about not owning televisions or going to movies — they were actually proud of sticking their heads in the sand!
Likewise, many of the conservatives I know at work today will tell anyone who listens that they won’t be caught dead watching “that highbrow crap.”
But this is no solution. Conservatives need to learn to participate in the culture, to shape it, to build it, not hide from it. Hiding from the culture is like sticking your head in the sand to avoid the tide. That’s why I’m so happy to see guys like Mike Wilson, who, in my opion, get it.
Excellent article. Good luck on the next project – can’t wait to see it.
VONSCHLOEGEL, did your mother ever tell you that unless you have something productive to say, shut it? Or, was she just as negative as you are?
[...] Astute Media Criticism at Big Hollywood [...]
In the spirit of Mr. Wilson’s “stop complaining and start doing” one thing that could be tried is to start a film fund that is outside the Hollywood Leftist-opinion-complex. Find some money folks to join in something like a “Common Sense Movie Partners I” (then II, II, IV, etc). Just make movies, not necessarily “conservative” movies. Just movies that Hollywood is supposed to like. Ones that put butts in the seats. In other words…entertaining movies. Instead of funneling all that box office into the destruction of common sense, build a box office and they will come.
Well, we can put themes in our movies, but thats not hiding a message. Liberals don’t bother, they smash you in the head with it. Its annoying, and we should weave themes into the story, not sucker-punch a liberal with a sudden attack on Obama. If it annoys us, we should avoid it.
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