Mike Rowe Says Upcoming Movie Will Be ‘Unapologetically’ Patriotic
By Movieguide® Contributor
Mike Rowe shared some details about his latest project, SOMETHING TO STAND FOR, a movie that will reflect Rowe’s patriotism.
“The movie consists of nine short stories written for my podcast, all of which I present from the stage of an empty theater, and all of which have been brought to life with cinematic recreations,” he described in a Facebook post. “Each story is a mystery of sorts, that tells you something you probably don’t know about someone you probably do – in most cases, a famous American who risked everything to give us the country we all call home. Your job, as viewers of my podcast know, is to try and figure out who I’m talking about before I get to the end.”
The movie was inspired by the “Something To Stand For” segment of Rowe’s popular “The Way I Heard It” podcast, which is described as “a series of short mysteries for the curious mind with a short attention span [that] has evolved into enlightening conversations for the not-so-short attention span.”
A description of SOMETHING TO STAND FOR reads:
Drawing from his blockbuster podcast THE WAY I HEARD IT, this cinematic tour de force will take viewers to the frontlines of the American Revolution, World War II, the Civil Rights movement, and more. Part mystery, part history – each harrowing tale tells a story you’ve never heard, about the patriots who built our country. From the legendary rebels we call the “Founding Fathers” to unknown Marines of Iwo Jima – these are the Americans who risked everything to build the country we love and call home. The American heroes who gave us… something to stand for!
Rowe explained that his hope for the movie is to make people feel good about America and the people who built it, and promised there will be “no mention of conservatives, liberals, democrats, republicans, independents, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, RFK Jr., or anyone else who might run for office.”
“It will, however, be patriotic, and unapologetically so,” he added.
SOMETHING TO STAND FOR was “inspired by the ongoing war on the symbols of America, a war of vandalism waged by those who believe the present can be improved by erasing the past,” he continued.
“This movie is for them – that still sizeable population who identify as Americans, first and foremost,” Rowe wrote. “Americans of all races who genuinely care about our shared history, and understand that even though our nation is still a work in progress – and always will be – there are still a great many things worth standing for.”
SOMETHING TO STAND FOR is expected to hit theaters nationwide on June 27.
Movieguide® previously reported on Rowe’s commitment to promoting patriotic values:
Mike Rowe recently reposted a Facebook status from 2016. The status came after a woman commented on how Rowe could be “so blindly patriotic.”
That comment came after Rowe posted, “Last night on the tee-vee, as I flicked back and forth between my most trusted sources of cable news, I saw a number a college students setting fire to the American flag. Some of the students said they were ‘angry.’ Others said they were ‘disgusted.’”
Rowe started, “I’ve never thought of myself as ‘blindly patriotic,’ but I am a fan of the United States, the founding fathers, and the men and women who have served on my behalf. I also confess to feeling lucky to live here. Having said that, I think you’re correct about the flag; it’s only a symbol. So too is the Crucifix. And the middle finger. And the Swastika. And the compressed chunks of carbon that millions wear on their ring fingers as expressions of timeless love and eternal devotion…”
Rowe then went on to describe that “mere symbols” are the backbone of “mere humanity.”
“The thing about ‘mere symbols’ Susanne, is that they represent ‘mere ideas,’ and ‘mere ideas’ are the backbone of ‘mere humanity.’ In the case of the flag, we’re talking about ideas that are wrapped into the Constitution – a document that separates us from every other country on the planet,” he wrote.
“Mere ideas are the reason people fight and die,” Rowe continued. “Mere ideas are the reason we’re allowed to speak freely, protest publicly, bear arms, and burn the very symbol that represents those very freedoms. I didn’t suggest that you or anyone else be denied your right to fly or burn whatever flag you wish. What I failed to do, is quietly accept behavior I don’t care for. Which, if I’m not mistaken, is the same compulsion that motivates others to publicly express themselves in whatever ways they choose.”
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