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A Boy's Life on HBO
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Posted by: justapixel

I just want to recommend this documentary to those who like this genre. I watched it last night, and it was interesting, sad, and quite chilling to watch grandma's interaction with the child. More so because it's true.

I'll say no more, but give it a look.

Posted by: cptodd

Did you get the feeling that you were being manipulated by the director in any way? In some sense it felt forced almost like the director was cherry picking the scenes. What did you think? In any event that grandmother was abusive.

Posted by: ClutchBrake

Could you elaborate on the topic just a little bit? I realize it is probably about... a boy's life... but more details might be interesting.

Posted by: cptodd

Try this link:

http://www.hbo.com/docs/programs/boys_life/index.html

Posted by: justapixel

quote:
Originally posted by cptodd
Did you get the feeling that you were being manipulated by the director in any way? In some sense it felt forced almost like the director was cherry picking the scenes. What did you think? In any event that grandmother was abusive.

I didn't get that sense. I mean, obviously the point was to show the boy was normal and grandma was emotionally abusive and possibly mentally ill. So, they showed parts of their lives that illustrated that. I'm sure the director picked out the creepiest parts to show, such as when grandma hugged the boy at the party. But, I really felt that the truth of this little boy's life was shown, and the story wasn't manipulated. I wonder exactly how competent the real mom was, and they didn't elaborate on that, but the social worker seemed to believe that she was doing well.

I wonder where they found these people?

Posted by: cptodd

quote:
Originally posted by justapixel
I didn't get that sense. I mean, obviously the point was to show the boy was normal and grandma was emotionally abusive and possibly mentally ill. So, they showed parts of their lives that illustrated that. I'm sure the director picked out the creepiest parts to show, such as when grandma hugged the boy at the party. But, I really felt that the truth of this little boy's life was shown, and the story wasn't manipulated. I wonder exactly how competent the real mom was, and they didn't elaborate on that, but the social worker seemed to believe that she was doing well.

I wonder where they found these people?

I don't know. I know that the act of constructing a narrative can in some ways be construed as a manipulation but for some reason I felt a bit more wary than usual on this one.

You know the best part was the principal of the show. She just seemed to be drowning from all of the ills (whether they are societal or personal or a combination) and that clearly came through. Where did they find these folks? If you look at the principal you seem to understand that they are more prevalent that you might think. They (people in extreme poverty and/or people with "issues" like the grand mother's) are in all sorts of communities and all regions of this country (and others).

The creepies moment for me was when the grand mother performed her faith healing ritual.

Posted by: mrboo

quote:
Originally posted by cptodd
Did you get the feeling that you were being manipulated by the director in any way? In some sense it felt forced almost like the director was cherry picking the scenes. What did you think? In any event that grandmother was abusive.

"Cherry picking"? That's called editing. You have to have some type of POV in order to make a docu. The educated viewer is able to see through whatever manipulations may be present and be able to make up one's own mind. I thought it was a powerful doc with a disorder (munchausen by proxy) that I'd never heard of previously.

Posted by: grecorj

quote:
Originally posted by justapixel
I wonder where they found these people?

My wife & I wondered that, too. Is this what "middle America" is like? Am I that out of touch with how the majority of Americans live? I mean, I thought I was living a pretty typical life. Maybe I should be a little more appreciative of what I've got.

quote:
"I'm gonna get me the surgery, some teeth and them I'm gonna go to school and be a lawyer."

Pretty depressing tv viewing. :(

Posted by: cptodd

quote:
Originally posted by grecorj
My wife & I wondered that, too. Is this what "middle America" is like? Am I that out of touch with how the majority of Americans live? I mean, I thought I was living a pretty typical life. Maybe I should be a little more appreciative of what I've got.

Pretty depressing tv viewing. :(

I am not sure that these people represent the majority of Americans (they might I am just not sure) but they do represent a hell of a lot of people and there is an increasing number of Americans who are not too far away from them (at least in their standard of living). It would just take some sort of minor event to push them into desperation. I.E. living from paycheck to paycheck and then comes the loss of a job or something.

Posted by: JFriday

I wonder how old the Grandma is? The daughter was 24. She looked way too old to be in her mid 40's but that's more than likely how old she is.

Posted by: cptodd

quote:
Originally posted by JFriday
I wonder how old the Grandma is? The daughter was 24. She looked way too old to be in her mid 40's but that's more than likely how old she is.

Life wears you down. A hard life wears you down faster. She could very well be in her 40's