If Moore were a more radical polemicist, he might have focused squarely on this alarming social injustice, but, perhaps rightly, he sees a broader one. Even the insured are handing themselves over to a bewildering lottery.
Sicko (2007)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted:15
Fresh:14
Rotten:1
Average Rating:7.6/10
Consensus: Though some consider his political bent divisive, Michael Moore's humanism is pretty universal in this devastating, convincing, and very entertaining expose of America’s health care system. Moore's permissive to download Sicko paired with the film's activity-inspiring website made it a considerable accomplishment in grassroots activism.
Theatrical Release:26-10-2007
Synopsis: America's most incendiary filmmaker, Michael Moore, returned in 2007 with this health-care-industry exposé. SICKO tackles material as controversial as the topics explored in Moore's other films,... America's most incendiary filmmaker, Michael Moore, returned in 2007 with this health-care-industry exposé. SICKO tackles material as controversial as the topics explored in Moore's other films, yet does so in a way that places the focus on ordinary Americans affected by the nation's health-care crisis. After providing some historical background on how our nation's medical care system became so ravaged and unfair, Moore interviews a series of individuals and families who have had their lives all but destroyed by the denial of care in the service of profit. While there are two sides to the gun-control debate and even a legitimate discourse for how to best wage the war on terror, it's simply impossible to justify how a baby girl can wind up dead because her mother's health insurance wasn't accepted at a nearby hospital. Moore smartly allows this and other stories to be told with little or no interference, conjuring strong feelings of empathy, rage, and deep sadness. Of course, SICKO isn't a PBS documentary, it's a Michael Moore movie, and his fingerprints are all over it. Moore visits countries that have universal health care--spectacularly so when he takes several World Trade Center workers to Guantanamo Bay (and then to Cuba) to receive health care that they were denied in the United States--and presents a compelling argument for adopting a similar system in the States. Moore's ultimate purpose here is to compel Americans to care for one another, and it's a simple request that shockingly must be made via a major motion picture, making SICKO essential viewing. [More]
Starring: Michael Moore
Starring: Michael Moore
Director: Michael Moore
Director: Michael Moore
Producer: Kathleen Glynn, Michael Moore, Meghan O'Hara
Studio: Weinstein Company
Reviews for Sicko
While we all have our grumbles about the NHS, it’s hard not to be caught up in Moore’s righteous indignation on behalf of his countrymen, or not to feel a twitch of pride in our own.
Michael Moore's best film to date. Entertaining, moving, funny, hard-hitting, right-on. It won't silence his critics, but it will give them something to think about.
Horrifying, heart-breaking, often hilarious - Moore’s latest shock doc is a potent polemic.
Moore's commentary can grate, but his most brilliant prank - escorting a group of 911 workers to Cuba for free healthcare - manages to be political gelignite and intensely moving at the same time.
‘Sicko’ is a quieter, more focused and less feral beast than its predecessor, ‘Fahrenheit 9/11’, but that’s not saying much.
Moore can’t resist over-egging the ironies, or revelling in the absurd. [There's] a strong whiff of sanctimony about Moore’s mighty indignation. It draws the sting from his satire.
Moore's films usually make conservatives angry. This one is likely to strike home with anyone, left or right, who has had serious illness in the family.
It's not impossible that this bitterly funny, bitterly sad call to alms could move reform back up the political agenda. For that reason alone, you owe it to yourself to see this movie.
We Americans inevitably feel we know the best way to do everything, but the great accomplishment of Sicko is that it is difficult to watch this slyly confrontational film and remain sure.
Michael Moore has never before made a film that stated his bedrock ideological principles as clearly and accessibly as Sicko.
An affecting and entertaining dissection of the American health care industry, showing how it benefits the few at the expense of the many.
This is the movie where Michael Moore gets a few Michael Moore haters off his back.
Latest News for Sicko
January 11, 2008:
Juno, No Country for Old Men Among Writers Guild Award Nominees
If there's one Hollywood awards ceremony that you'd think would be able to go off without a hitch this year, it'd be the Writers Guild Awards -- but you'd be wrong. More...
January 09, 2008:
No Country for Old Men, Juno, There Will Be Blood Lead Critics' Choice Winners
In what seems destined to go down as one of the season's few strike-free awards shows, the Critics' Choice Awards were held on Monday. More...
December 10, 2007:
There Will Be Blood, No Country For Old Men Top Critics' Awards
Multiple honorees from four regional critics' circles include the Coen Brothers' No Country for Old Men, P.T. Anderson's There Will Be Blood, Julian Schnabel's The Diving Bell... More...
November 20, 2007:
Fifteen Documentaries Vie for Oscar Consideration
A little over a week after reporting the names of the dozen films being submitted for Oscar consideration in the animated feature film category, Variety has given readers the... More...
More DVDs
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 15% 15% | The Ugly Truth |
| 98% 98% | Up |
| 36% 36% | G.I. Joe: The Rise of … |
| 52% 52% | The Taking of Pelham 1… |
| 45% 45% | Ice Age: Dawn of the D… |
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 36% 36% | Angels & Demons |
| 68% 68% | Funny People |
| 25% 25% | Four Christmases |
| 45% 45% | Shorts |
| 53% 53% | David & Layla |
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Sponsored Links
Fresh Links
Featured

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.



Top Critic

