The first season of
Michael Moore's television show
The Awful Truth consists of 12 episodes and is a sound introduction for those unfamiliar with Moore's guerilla style of social-conscience filmmaking. After his original show,
TV Nation, was canceled by NBC, Moore moved to Bravo, a more accommodating network that would allow him to proceed with his ideas. Each episode of
The Awful Truth is 30 minutes long, opening with a monologue by Moore and leading to a journalistic exposé of some social wrong typically perpetrated by a large corporation. Much like he did in his documentaries Roger & Me and
The Big One, Moore often ambushes his targets, surprising them and forcing them to speak candidly. This candor helps produce the scathing edge that has made Moore's projects so popular. Among the highlights of the 12 episodes are Moore and crew busting a giant health insurance company that tries to avoid paying for an organ transplant to save a man's life, confronting homophobic and hate-spewing Rev. Fred Phelps in a pink RV christened the "Sodomobile," and sending an Awful Truth mascot chicken into Disney World to expose the deplorable working conditions of the employees in costume. Some people may be turned off by Moore's leftist politics and his labor-friendly attitude, but most will not be able to deny his sincere efforts to hold corporate crooks responsible for their actions. The DVD version of
The Awful Truth contains a biography of
Michael Moore and several amusing outtakes from the filming of the show. ~ Ed Atkinson, All Movie Guide