Say what you want about all the historical inaccuracies in Michael Moore's Roger & Me, this film still accomplishes the overall goal of the director. Moore did not make this film simply intending to tell a story of Flint, Michigan. Instead he aimed to build support for the working class in a battle against the corporate elite.
Sure, the fact that the GM layoffs forcing 30,000 Flint residents into unemployment and effectively destroying the city's economy actually took place slowly over a long period of time slightly diminishes the shock value of the film. However, one must remember that these are still real people Moore is interviewing, and their lives have been altered by the layoffs. It does not matter if they were laid off in 1981 or 1984 or years later. The sad state their lives are in is more than enough to prove that the GM layoffs did so significant, although possibly not as significant as Moore would have us believe.
Sure, the fact that the GM layoffs forcing 30,000 Flint residents into unemployment and effectively destroying the city's economy actually took place slowly over a long period of time slightly diminishes the shock value of the film. However, one must remember that these are still real people Moore is interviewing, and their lives have been altered by the layoffs. It does not matter if they were laid off in 1981 or 1984 or years later. The sad state their lives are in is more than enough to prove that the GM layoffs did so significant, although possibly not as significant as Moore would have us believe.