KnotMissPriceless Why so much hype?

Wordiezett So much average

Intcatinfo A Masterpiece!

Tayyab Torres Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Jafar Iqbal A controversial documentary about the Friedman family, a seemingly typical, upper-class Jewish family living in Long Island, New York. Their very normal and somewhat happy world was turned upside down when the father and his youngest son were arrested and charged with some very shocking and disturbing crimes.'Capturing The Friedmans' is a film of which 95% was watched with a very bemused expression on my face. It's one of those stories you'd happily accept as a work of bold and slightly twisted fiction; the fact that it's all reality is awful. It won't be a spoiler to reveal that the crimes in question were all related to the sexual abuse of children, and the description of those supposed crimes is horrific.Supposed though, because what the film does so well is point out that the actual truth still really isn't known. It's hard to doubt the evidence against Arnold Friedman, the patriarch and alleged main abuser, but it's the involvement of son Jesse that raises the most doubts. Only seventeen himself when the allegations were made, it is difficult to believe that he could be involved. However, it is very plainly shown that he was one of three sons that had a deep affection for their father, but could it really extend as far as agreeing to assist in his sordid acts? That is one of the conundrums of the movie.What really fascinates me about the documentary is the portrayal of Elaine Friedman, the victimised wife and mother. Not victimised just by the outside world, but by her own family. Unlike the rest of the family, she doesn't blindly trust her husband, which leads to some heated arguments and an eventual alienation from everyone. Her testimony is possibly the most impactful, being the woman who has known Arnold the longest and could cite moments which gave credence to his guilt.Director Andrew Jarecki is fantastic at making sure he stays as neutral as he possibly can, given the circumstances. It would have been very easy to turn it into a biased look at an evil family; but Jarecki makes sure to not go down that route. Through the use of home video footage and interviews, we are made to look at the story from every perspective. The ending of the movie is a very emotional and, somehow, happy one, giving a level of sympathy we probably didn't want.'Capturing The Friedmans' is a very good documentary, but it wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea. However, get past the fact that this is people who potentially committed heinous crimes against innocent children, and what you get is a story about family and loyalty. Excellent.

erniecalderon I'm still not entirely sure whom to believe. This is a testament as to how good this documentary is on denial, family, lies, love, and horror. I would certainly recommend it to whomever wishes to feel real badly about human nature and the evil ways that it manifests itself. Belief in WHATEVER is so powerful and it never ceases to amaze me how we are able to convince ourselves of ANYTHING. I say this only because this family is in absolute denial and they have genuinely convinced themselves that there father is innocent of all charges. With so much damning evidence, it is hard to believe that anyone, with any sense, would not prematurely convict this man of the horrors he committed.

roymosl3 This is a good documentary that captures the mind state of a pedophile and the the stress that is put on the pedophiles family. The documentary provides viewers with an inside look by showing, actual, home videos of a family that is put through a stressful trial and we are able to see tempers flare. And we get to see this family unravel on home video footage. By watching the home videos people are able to dissect the characters and the family seems to show their true feelings on camera, because I do not think they knew that there would be a documentary about their life. The father is the one that is accused of being a pedophile and his sons are dragged through the mud with him and the mother has to make the best decisions for her self and family. There are a lot of witnesses and there is so many different stories of what happens and different stories of who the father really is, but this documentary keeps you watching because you know someone is lying. The subject is a hard one to bare, but the documentary sheds the light on the psychology of a society on a touchy subject such as this.

moonspinner55 Seemingly ordinary family in the Great Neck suburb of Long Island, New York are torn apart by child molestation allegations, which may or may not have been fabricated by underage witnesses coerced by the authorities. A retired teacher-turned-computer instructor is put in the legal hot-spot after a underage pornographic magazine is delivered to him undercover; his students are then interviewed for any possible misconduct, and soon the married father of three and his youngest son are arrested on sex abuse charges. Quietly devastating documentary from Andrew Jarecki weaves both vintage and recent home movie footage of the family with revealing interviews of the former Friedman matriarch (who had fallen out of love with her accused husband and failed to stand by him) and two of her sons. Jarecki is very careful not to paint the 'victims' as villains but, in trying to be somewhat non-subjective, he clouds some of the legal ramifications in mystery (why is the son's attorney completely contradicting his client's statements? Is the attorney lying--and if so, what did he have to gain?). Eldest son David tries so hard to be the voice of reason--while feeling victimized himself--that he inadvertently becomes the star of the movie, the glue which is barely holding the family together. It's a portrait of lives destroyed by contagious hysteria...and by personal demons and repressed sexuality. The film is by turns tragic, unfair, rueful, frustrating, incredibly human, and incredibly moving. *** from ****