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Firebrand filmmaker Michael Moore plants the flag for America in "Where to Invade Next," using his familiar brand of satire to extol European notions that he thinks could make America great.
After a shaky setup — suggesting that the Pentagon has sent him to "invade" other countries to steal their best ideas — Moore goes abroad to explore what other countries are doing right that we're doing wrong.
He touts, among other things, Italy's paid-vacation schedule, France's gourmet school lunches, Tunisia's government-funded women's health care (including abortion services), Finland's humane prisons and Iceland's prosecution of economy-destroying bankers. What's more, he talks to people in these countries who credit America for giving them the inspiration for these ideas and wonder why we don't deploy them ourselves.
The travelogue provides plenty to chew on, but one wishes it were possible to separate the merit of Moore's suggestions from the smug superiority he exudes whenever he speaks.
'Where to Invade Next'
Opening Friday, Feb. 12, at the Broadway Centre Cinemas; rated R for language, some violent images, drug use and brief graphic nudity; 119 minutes.