Build a movie plot around this: Which President gave the famous malaise speech? Jimmy Carter
Answer:
The film alternates between a fierce critique of the status quo, personal portraits of the suffering caused by the recent economic crisis, and comical social satire. The film begins a series of security footages of bank robberies (one of the robbers was even on a crutch) accompanied by the song "Louie, Louie". Moore then uses an Encyclopedia Britannica archive video to compare the modern-day America with the Roman Empire. The film then depicts home videos of families being evicted from their homes, as well as the "Condo Vultures", a Florida real estate agent whose business flourished with the increasing number of foreclosures.The film then cuts back to the past "golden days" of American capitalism following World War II. The film then shows part of a July 15, 1979 speech by President Jimmy Carter (known today as the "Malaise" speech) about America's "crisis of confidence" and warning Americans of the dangers of "self-indulgence and consumption" (which almost no one wanted to listen to).In the following Reagan years of the 1980s, where the policies of Don Regan "turned the bull loose" for free enterprises, corporations gained more political power, unions were weakened, and socioeconomic gaps were widened. The film then cuts to the Luzerne County court scandal, Captain Sullenberger's congressional testimony regarding airline pilots' poor treatment, and the expose of "dead peasant insurance" policies that have companies profiting from the deaths of their employees.Moore then interviews several Catholic priests, including Bishop Thomas Gumbleton (Archdiocese of Detroit), all of whom consider capitalism contrary to the teachings of Christianity. The film then presents a mockery of what would happen if Jesus was a capitalist who wanted to "maximize profits", to "deregulate the banking industry" and wanted the sick to "pay out of pocket" for their "pre-existing condition", in contrast with several news pundits who proclaim the success of various capitalist enterprises as being a "blessing from God."The film then...