Watching Andrew Jarecki's riveting non-fiction drama is like watching a slow-motion replay of a multi-car pileup; you know it's headed for disaster, but there's no way you can stop watching. On the surface, the Friedmans were a typical 1980s American family. Living in Great Neck, Long Island, Arnold was a well-respected teacher,.. Read more
| Starring | Arnold Friedman, Elaine Friedman, David Friedman, Seth Friedman |
|---|---|
| Director | Andrew Jarecki |
| Genres | Documentary |
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Watching Andrew Jarecki's riveting non-fiction drama is like watching a slow-motion replay of a multi-car pileup; you know it's headed for disaster, but there's no way you can stop watching. On the surface, the Friedmans were a typical 1980s American family. Living in Great Neck, Long Island, Arnold was a well-respected teacher, Elaine was a dedicated mother, and their children Seth, Jesse, and David were model students. But one Thanksgiving, that happy facade came to a crashing halt. After the local police discovered Arnold had engaged in the buying and selling of child pornography, they questioned several students who attended his computer classes in the Friedman basement. What they revealed would shock the community, and destroy the Friedman family forever. The subsequent investigation and trial uncovered even deeper hidden secrets at an alarming rate, creating a rift between Arnold and Elaine that would never be reconciled. Jarecki uses present day interviews with Elaine, Jesse, and David, as well as Arnold's brother Howard, to provide some sort of insight on the situation, but it backfires, for everyone has a different story to tell. And then there is actual home video footage of the family in the midst of the hurricane, which gives the film an eerie, voyeuristic charge.
| Starring | Arnold Friedman, Elaine Friedman, David Friedman, Seth Friedman, Jesse Friedman |
|---|---|
| Director | Andrew Jarecki |
| Studio | PALISADES TARTAN |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 48 mins LOVEFiLM Instant: 1 hr 43 mins |
| Certificate |  DVD LOVEFiLM Instant |
| Genres | Documentary |
| Language | DVD: English LOVEFiLM Instant: English |
| Released | Production year: 2004 To Watch Online: LOVEFiLM Instant: 27 Jan 2010 To Rent: DVD: 23 Jul 2004 |
| Watch now | Included in all packages with LOVEFiLM Instant. Subscribe. |
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On Thanksgiving weekend 1987, police in Great Neck, Long Island, pursuing a US Post Office sting, broke down the... read more on Time Out
- 64
- 3
Thought - provoking and compelling
The subject matter, being as it is about a family torn apart by paedophilia, should make this film hard to watch. However, watching the case unfold against the ... read more »
[Highly rated reviewer]
- 1
- 1
Makes you think!
THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS | Show review anywayHide
- 0
- 3
Flat.......
Okay to watch whilst ironing,this is something that could be found on a sky channel.Mildly interesting in the fact of the fascination found in comparing and ... read more »
- 2
- 0
Ulterior Motive
This is very well put together, but it is heavily slanted towards Jessie's innocence and the fact the Director funded his appeal there is very much an ... read more »
Inspired by the release of “American Teen”, we’ve compiled own playlist of must-see twenty first century documentaries. It’s been quite a decade for non-fiction filmmakers. Once synonymous with earnest and boring, the genre has undergone a radical facelift and enjoyed the kind of box-office success that would have been beyond the wildest dreams of the old guard of fly-on-the-wall practitioners. If Michael Apted had been charting the life cycle of the documentary film... Read more
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Capturing The Friedmans - Feature
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