Ben Stein shows he's no Michael Moore: "Expelled" flops.

[Occam Bandage]

If numbers are any indication, Ben Stein has shown he's no Michael Moore.

Stein's Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, a documentary which makes an argument for intelligent design over the theory of evolution, debuted at just number eight among the top ten grossing movies last week.

The film made $1.2 million on Friday in 1,052 theaters. By comparison, Michael Moore's 'Sicko' raked in $23.9 million its opening weekend from just 441 theaters, and Fahrenheit 9/11 did $23.9 million from only 868 slots.

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Ben_Stein_shows_hes_no_Michael_0420.html

[gatorboy]

1. The market people for that film will probably be waterboarded.

Not to say a different marketing plan would've helped but the poster design with Stein in the schoolboy uniform was just plain ugly.

[Johonny]

2. It probably shows

once again it's a bad idea to not have reviewers get a pre-screening of your movie. A bad review is still free publicity that your movie is out. I thought conservatives were suppose to be good at business?

[nxylas]

3. That seems to be the pattern with conservative documentaries

I wonder why conservatives don't go to see documentaries championing their causes, instead having to resort to claiming victory when The Passion of the Christ outgrossed F911 (talk about apples and oranges)?

[malaise]

4. A stupid ignorant movie denying knowledge

and science is still a stupid movie is still a stupid ignorant movie is still a stupid movie. I'm glad the people whose intelligence they sought to insult have rejected this bullshit.

[pokerfan]

7. "Darwinism led to the Holocaust"

That is offensive on its face. Darwin proposed the scientific theory of natural selection. Humans have been practicing unnatural selection for thousands of years by breeding plants and animals. Of course, genocides predate Darwin. You can even read about them in the bible.

[malaise]

13. Poor Darwin was used by every moron to justify a

variety of despicable human acts. Ironically, most of the people who hate Darwin have never read his classic.

[Johonny]

15. It's kind of funny

Most of the RWers that will see this movie also love books like the Bell Curve that "proves" social Darwinism.

[malaise]

18. Great point

Stupidity abounds

[LazyBones]

5. no idea it was out

I'd seen a commercial for it but had no idea what it was about or that it was even in theaters.
You made me google http://www.expelledexposed.com/
Sounds like it was garbage. You've spared my wasting time and money on BS.

[Richard Steele]

6. It sucked so bad, even some Right-Wing newspapers slammed it.

There was a thread around here yesterday...I'll see if I can find it. BRB

Edit: here it is:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=3185386



rom the Salt Lake Tribune:

While many right-wingers decried Michael Moore for playing fast-and-loose with the facts in his documentaries, apparently other conservatives said, "Hey, if he can do it, so can we."
And, lo, there appeared "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed," a slick but intellectually dishonest documentary that mounts an argument for so-called "intelligent design."

from the Arizona Republic:

...Stein, a Nixon administration functionary who re-invented himself as a movie and TV buffoon after "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," seems closer to his latter persona in this disingenuous and dishonest doc about something so silly you really wonder if he himself believes it. Or is the former host of "Win Ben Stein's Money" just trying to add to Ben Stein's money at the expense of the gullible? Perhaps that's why he's been so determined to keep his movie from anyone who might not automatically buy into its thesis, hiding it, in effect, from most members of the press.

from The Tennesseean:

Expelled is guilty of an array of logical fallacies, including ad hominem attacks on Dawkins and other scholars and hasty generalizations about the circumstances surrounding the "suppression" of ID-supporting scientists. Expelled relies on the bias that Americans usually demonstrate against intellectuals — specifically, that "egghead" scientists are geeky and weird and are not to be trusted because they are smart.


Links to full stories in original thread.

[Winterblues]

8. The number of theaters showing it tells a lot

Moores films couldn't get even half that number to show them...I think some questions should be asked about just this fact..

[slowry]

10. Hmm. IIRC Sicko, for example, was purposely released in select theatres,

to generate buzz, or some such thing. I could be wrong; it might be worth looking up, but that would take so much energy!

[JitterbugPerfume]

9. nothing makes me happier

than to see Ben Stein FLOP

[LiberalFighter]

11. One of the smartest man (supposedly) and he couldn't produce a good movie?

[KharmaTrain]

12. How'd This Crap Show Up On So Many Screens?

Over 1,000 theaters...someone was sure pushing to get this thing out there and put the screws to theater owners to book it. It'd be interesting to see if there's a way to get the backstory here...did Stein and his cronies get special considerations from the large theater chains, threw money or other considerations around or some other gimick that would get it shown in so many places...and I'm sure against the financial interests as rarely does a "documentary" get into a cineplex...especially one from an unproven "talent".

[liberal texan]

14. Expelled part 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ThQQuHtzHM

[kenny blankenship]

16. "Excreted"

[Rex]

17. Win Ben Stein's pride!

If he has any left.

[and-justice-for-all]

19. Expelled has been Expelled!! HAHA!!

[slowry]

20. Read the updated article, if you haven't. Kinda depressing, actually. n/t

[rucky]

21. Ben Stein seems like a smart guy...

and I can't comprehend why he would take-up this steaming heap of monkey dung as a pet cause.

[ColbertWatcher]

22. This movie wasn't made for the box office receipts...

...nor was it made to inform the general public about creationism.

The purpose of this movie is to hasten the privatization of education in America.

This movie will not convince people who already believe in creationism instead of science; they've already seen it at those secret church showings prior to the general release.

Nor will this movie help its financiers recoup any of their investment in it; it was never marketed for the general public and will likely be written off.

The purpose of this movie is to weaken public education in America.

Remember, the lie behind this movie is: "we (the creationists) just want to have our say".

The creationists say they want schools to "teach the controversy" (a controversy that only exists because they created it). They also believe students should hear "both sides" of a debate (a debate they alone designed). They have been thwarted by courts (Dover) and mocked by the "media" as they continue what they consider a valiant fight against anti-Christian sentiment.

For the creationists, the "sides" of this "controversy" are clear: on the side of fairness and openness they have cast themselves and on the side of anti-religion and elitist secrecy they have cast science.

So, they make a movie, show it at churches and at a few small, invitation-only screenings to insure a favorable audience.

Outsiders, however, are not invited or welcome. Even professional movie reviewers are prevented from doing their jobs.

It should come as no surprise to any honest person that once released to the general public, it was overwhelmingly rejected.

But for the true believers, that rejection (and any criticism warranted or not) serves only to reinforce their self-identification as martyrs, allowing them to play victim all over again.

The creationists won't stop using these http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appeal_to_fear#Fear.2C_uncertainty_and_doubt">FUD tactics until every American school teaches their brand of Christianity.