Buy it... if you want a souvenir of score and song tracks from Michael Moore's liberal film about George W. Bush's presidency.

Avoid it... if you were either offended by (or have no interest in viewing) the controversial film or hearing its representative music.

Fahrenheit 9/11: (Jeff Gibbs) Not much needs to be said to introduce this highly controversial film and the determined minds behind it. After the highly successful film Bowling for Columbine a few years earlier, liberal filmmaker Michael Moore sought to produce the ultimate anti-George W. Bush "documentary" as part of his personal effort to harm Bush's re-election chances against 2004 challenger John Kerry. President Bush is made to look silly and incompetent in the film, balancing between comedy and drama in its pursuit of exposing the less refined aspects of Bush's last three years. No effort has been made to mask Fahrenheit 9/11 as a straight documentary; the purpose of the film is quite clear to all in a year when half of America, along with the majority of the world's onlookers, hope for an end to Bush's controversial (and, as some would say, illegitimate) presidency. The difference between Fahrenheit 9/11 and most other propaganda films, however, is the extraordinary reception that the film has received from people all across the political spectrum. Whether or not you like Moore or the film, its impact has been profound because of the overwhelming viewership and consequent press that the film has received. When you think about these Moore documentaries, you're not likely going to recall the music... even if you're a soundtrack collector. But believe it or not, these films do have scores that co-exist with the better known outsourced songs.

The composer for Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 9/11 is a high school buddy of Moore's, Jeff Gibbs, whose primary duties on the films were as a producer and co-director over and beyond his involvement with the music. Moore and Gibbs first paired up on Bowling for Columbine on the directing side of the project, but when Moore's previous arrangements for a composer fell through, Gibbs used his musical talents to step in and provide an emergency score. That piano solo work would be released on a compilation of the composer's music called "Reflections." When it came time for Fahrenheit 9/11, Moore and Gibbs were once again co-producing the film, and Gibbs had more time and assets with which to make a fuller score. The only reason Gibbs' score has come to the forefront here --and the music was not something that Gibbs or Moore probably counted on as a selling point when they embarked on their production-- is because the score has been released along with several songs from the film on a commercial CD that coincides with the (strategically planned) early October release of Fahrenheit 9/11 on DVD. The first question most score fans will ask is: there's really a substantial amount of score for this film? In reality, no, there isn't much, but Gibbs has provided extended versions of what you heard for the snippets in the film so that the listening experience is fuller. The other question is: is the music as liberal as the film? One of the score cues does somewhat mock George Bush, and the irony in the song selections is not to be missed, but there surprisingly aren't quotes from film on the album. The score was never intended to be fantastic --this is no John Williams here-- and its substance was rendered on likely a single synthesizer.

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The last thing you can expect on a project such as this is anything more than what major composers would produce as a temp score. However, Gibbs' job was certainly sufficient (for both documentaries... his only scores) in serving its purpose. Electric strings set a general tone at the opening and closing score cues, a solo piano draws out Bush's waiting sequence, and "Weapons of Deceit" is the mocking, playful tune that is jolly in its insulting representation of leadership. After a solemn Cliff Martinez-like "Deserter" cue with a band rhythm, the "Afghan Victory Dance" cue puts a pseudo Middle Eastern style and inserts some flair into a slow night-club kind of atmosphere. These score cues collectively reach just under 20 minutes in length and don't have any common theme, motif, or thread. They are clearly "filler" cues meant to bridge the situations that are better suited by songs or silence in the film. Overall, the album is little more than a souvenir from the film. The songs aren't huge hits, with R.E.M.'s insufferably happy and shiny "Shiny Happy People" perhaps the best known of the lot. But even the songs are inconsistent in style and genre, leaving this album as more of a curiosity more than anything else. It's interesting to wonder what the late Elmer Bernstein would think of the appearance of his Magnificent Seven theme in the film and on this album. People who loved the film will likely find it be a somewhat cool addition to their Fahrenheit 9/11 experience, but if you haven't seen the film and/or were offended by it, then it will serve you no purpose. Looking back at it, maybe quotes from the film would have the best thing to spice up an album that already has an "explicit lyrics" warning. **