The Daily Background

Controversial filmmaker Michael Moore has made a secret “backup” copy of his next film, should the original masters be seized by the Bush Administration. The film, “SiCKO,” is expected to blast the US health care system as well as the Administration for failing to take care of American citizens.

Moore, known for the explosive 2004 documentary muckraker “Fahrenheit 9/11,” has already come under investigation by the Bush Administration after he took several 9/11 First Responders suffering from breathing problems to Cuba in order to get treatment that the US government refused to give them. Although there is a decades-old ban on Americans traveling to Cuba, Moore used a loophole to take the 9/11 workers reserved for journalists.

The stunt– set to be included in the film– is believed to have been conducted in secret sometime during March of 2007. “Thousands of Americans responded with heroism and courage, toiling for days, weeks and months in the ruins at Ground Zero,” said Meghan O’Hara, a producer for SiCKO, in a statement Thursday. “These 9/11 first responders risked their lives searching for survivors, recovering bodies, and clearing away toxic rubble.”

“Now, many of these heroes face serious health issues — and far too many of them are not receiving the care they need and deserve. President Bush and the Bush Administration should be spending their time trying to help these heroes get health care instead of abusing the legal process to advance a political agenda,” she said.

According to a report by the Associated Press, Moore has smuggled a backup copy of the film to a “safe house” somewhere outside the United States, should the master copy be seized by the government before it goes into theaters. Moore has echoed support for free file-sharing as an alternative distribution method in the past.

“The efforts of the Bush Administration to conduct a politically motivated investigation of Michael Moore and ‘SiCKO’ will not stop us from making sure the American people see this film,” O’Hara said.

The Bush Administration’s Treasury Department sent Moore a letter in May notifying him that he was under investigation by them with regard to his trip to Cuba earlier this year. Moore submitted an application to visit the island country in October 2006, but the Administration seems to have stalled approving it, and has still not made a “determination” regarding whether or not his trip should be allowed, according to the letter.

“You should be aware that failure to respond to this letter may result in the imposition of civil penalties,” the letter concludes. Moore’s lawyers have not yet decided how to respond.

Although Moore is known for his explosive documentary work (most notably Fahrenheit 9/11 which took aim at Bush himself and scored more than 222 million dollars at box offices worldwide), executive producer Harvey Weinstein says that this film is not likely to create as much controversy as some of his previous works. “I’ve seen this movie with Republicans and Democrats, and this is one time Michael has sort of unified everyone,” Weinstein told Variety.

SiCKO, backed by The Weinstein Company and distributed by Lionsgate, will debut at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival in the coming days, and will open in theaters in the United States on June 29th.

Filed under: Z-Feature