Columbine Documentary Analysis

I have seen this documentary many times, but the feelings that I got watching it this time were much different. I remember seeing this documentary for the first time as a freshman in high school, often shielded from everything going on in the world. As I watched this time, I watched with a broken heart and a devastated view of the country that we live in. I watched with hope to believe that our country had indeed improved in certain ways; but I was left feeling that same void and disappointment. The way that director, Michael Moore, went about telling this story and searching for answers was magnificent, it made you think and analyze each situation. The story began with discussing how accessible guns were, which is where many of us …show more content…
We are introduced to the town of Littleton, Colorado. As Moore is meeting with an alarm system installer, the man says “Burglars and rapists are still in the neighborhood.” Moore responds with “Where” and the man is stunned and left with no response. I believe that this reflects the culture of fear that we, as Americans, live in, this will be discussed in greater detail later on. Littleton is home to Columbine High School, where the Columbine shooting took place. I had seen the news and read articles on Columbine, but I had yet to see the security camera footages. Seeing these footages of children running for their life haunts me, it breaks my heart and it made me fearful. Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold were able to legally purchase a gun, at the age of 18, while still in high school. They were also able to purchase 900 rounds of ammo at a local Kmart. With that, they killed 12 students and 1 teacher, and affected everyone in that school and around it for the rest of their life before killing themselves as …show more content…
There have been many examples of explanations for gun violence in the US, that include: poverty, television, and the breakup of the American family. But, those things are not limited to the United States, they occur all over the world. In Japan there are approximately, 39 gun related deaths a year. In France, there are approximately 255 gun related deaths a year. In the United Kingdom, there are approximately 68 gun related deaths a year. In the United States, there are approximately 11,127 gun related deaths a year. The one thing that stuck out to Moore about Canadians is their lack of fear. They have all of the same problems as Americans, they have as many guns, if not more; but they were not afraid. I think that plays into the news media and the way that they pump fear into Americans. In Canada, the nightly news consists of improvements to their town and policies, along with politicians that are there to help; whereas, the nightly news in America is focused on the horrific crimes that have taken place and how to protect ourselves from those sorts of things happening to us. One specific quote that stuck with me was, “Americans view locks as keeping people out, Canadians view locks as keeping people