Michigan residents get preview of Michael Moore’s ‘Capitalism’

BELLAIRE, Mich. (AP) — Filmmaker Michael Moore gave residents of his adopted Michigan community an early showing of his new documentary Saturday and urged them to help overthrow an economic system he said was beyond redemption.

More than 500 people crowded into a theater in Bellaire to see “Capitalism: A Love Story,” a film based on the premise that greed and corruption have subverted U.S. democracy.

“I know what’s in front of me these next weeks and months,” Moore told one audience, anticipating withering criticism from conservative politicians and commentators, then added with a laugh: “That’s why I wanted to watch this with you guys before I’m thrown to the lions.”

The film blames the economic crisis on President Reagan-era deregulation and greedy business executives who Moore believes undermined free enterprise by pushing for policies that benefited the richest 1 percent while hurting the lower and middle classes.

Moore and his team produced “Capitalism” in a studio in Traverse City south of Bellaire.