Michael Moore takes a stand for better film presentation

Michael Moore wants to save the world. But he also wants to save the movies. In his latest doc, “Where to Invade Next,” Moore travels the globe, cherry-picking specific social services — school lunches, prison time, women’s health clinics — done well in other countries but not in Ameirca. To his list of little but important things that need fixing, add theatrical movie exhibition.

We talked to Moore about his film, and about Donald Trump, and about conservative comedy. At the tail-end of it we happened upon the topic of movie theaters, a subject that also gets him going. As a filmmaker he’s particularly miffed at how bad the presentation and projection of films, including his, has gotten: 3-D lenses often being put on 2-D movies and screwing up the image; light bulbs never being changed.

“I have a thing I’m going to propose to my union, the DGA [the Director’s Guild of America], that we actually certify theaters around the country,” Moore tells us. “We’ll put our Good Housekeeping Seal on theaters to say, ‘If you go to a movie here it’s being projected correctly. The sound is great, you got great sightlines from your seat.’”

Moore says other filmmakers need to join up with this crusade. “It’s our art. We’re the only artists who don’t care how our art is presented to the public. An art gallery, believe me, whoever the painter is he lit it, he framed it, nobody from the public saw it till he saw it and it was perfect,” he says. “Even a rock band that is f—ing high on whatever dugs they’re on will show up for the 4 p.m. soundcheck, because they give a s—. We finish the sound mix and put it in a DHL bag and, adios, that’s the last time we see it. We spend years of our lives on these movies. You’d think we’d care a bit more how it looks.”

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