Temperature Rising

Another day, another speedbump on Fahrenheit 9/11's road to cinemas. As Michael Moore continues his publicity tour of American chat shows and the right-wing media sharpens its knives the MPAA, America's ratings board, has slapped Michael Moore's polemic with an R-rating which could cause a huge restriction in its potential box-office numbers. Apparently the scenes causing offence include some soldiers quoting lyrics from the heavy metal version of The Roof Is On Fire, which includes the line "we don't need no water; let the (four syllable swear word alluding to sexual practices with child-bearing women) burn". There are also scenes showing the bodies of Iraqi civilians being loaded into trucks and children with severe war wounds. Moore and his distributors are appealing the decision today prior to the film's American release on Friday, arguing that the documentary will contribute to a national political debate and should be available to the widest possible audience. They will argue that the use of a common profanity should not make the difference alone, and that similar images of the casualties of war have already been broadcast in news coverage of the war in Iraq. Fahrenheit 9/11 opens here in the UK on 9 July.