Tuesday, March 30, 2004
Look Out... Here Come My Deep Thoughts
I finally saw Capturing the Friedmans the other night, and I definitely have to recommend it, although perhaps not for your next family movie night or church social. It’s about this truly grotesque molestation case from the 80s (when molestation was as big of a craze as legwarmers and Dynasty), and it provides a really interesting exploration of the uncertainty of memory and the questionable mesh between legal and philosophical truth. It also incorporates a lot of truly compelling home video footage of the accused molesters’ family as it basically disintegrates under the weight of these allegations. Although it does point out a lot of weaknesses in the way the case was investigated, it definitely doesn’t shirk the unpleasant details about the Friedmans that make their convictions more credible. In fact, I think the feeling of ambiguity the film leaves you with is its strongest point. That, and the six new songs by B2K. They really know how to jam.
On a larger scale, however, the movie really made me think about the problems attendant to preventing and punishing child abuse. I do wonder if people can ever be “cured” of the inappropriate sexual impulses that cause them to prey on children. My understanding is that these desires can be controlled, but I feel certain our ability to determine which offenders are exercising control is imperfect at best, and there is very little room for error. At the same time, I think it is problematic to lock a person up indefinitely (as some states do with “civilly committed” sex offenders) based on impulses that they cannot, after all, control. Aren’t we then dealing with “thought crime?” Perhaps unsurprisingly, I have no answers.
The extras on the Friedman DVDs are also definitely worth checking out. There’s a whole background on the case, in addition to footage of those involved in the prosecution and defense responding to the movie at its premieres. I was especially heartened by the director’s very even-handed, respectful, and intelligent discourse with his audience and the figures in the film. It’s very thoughtfully put together, and it’s likely to be thought provoking as well.
I finally saw Capturing the Friedmans the other night, and I definitely have to recommend it, although perhaps not for your next family movie night or church social. It’s about this truly grotesque molestation case from the 80s (when molestation was as big of a craze as legwarmers and Dynasty), and it provides a really interesting exploration of the uncertainty of memory and the questionable mesh between legal and philosophical truth. It also incorporates a lot of truly compelling home video footage of the accused molesters’ family as it basically disintegrates under the weight of these allegations. Although it does point out a lot of weaknesses in the way the case was investigated, it definitely doesn’t shirk the unpleasant details about the Friedmans that make their convictions more credible. In fact, I think the feeling of ambiguity the film leaves you with is its strongest point. That, and the six new songs by B2K. They really know how to jam.
On a larger scale, however, the movie really made me think about the problems attendant to preventing and punishing child abuse. I do wonder if people can ever be “cured” of the inappropriate sexual impulses that cause them to prey on children. My understanding is that these desires can be controlled, but I feel certain our ability to determine which offenders are exercising control is imperfect at best, and there is very little room for error. At the same time, I think it is problematic to lock a person up indefinitely (as some states do with “civilly committed” sex offenders) based on impulses that they cannot, after all, control. Aren’t we then dealing with “thought crime?” Perhaps unsurprisingly, I have no answers.
The extras on the Friedman DVDs are also definitely worth checking out. There’s a whole background on the case, in addition to footage of those involved in the prosecution and defense responding to the movie at its premieres. I was especially heartened by the director’s very even-handed, respectful, and intelligent discourse with his audience and the figures in the film. It’s very thoughtfully put together, and it’s likely to be thought provoking as well.
