Evengyny
Thanks for the memories!
Voxitype
Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.
Zandra
The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.
hannah_67
I don't think it matters how well done this documentary is - the story is the point. Letting the victims speak and organizing it in a way that reveals the truth is why i found this documentary compelling. I think everyone could learn something from this. And don't get stuck on the acting industry alone - this issue is bigger than Hollywood.
emilywes56
I give 10/10 to this documentary, although I don't think it was as revealing as it could be. However, I really believe it was an important contribution to the area of documentaries, an honest work and a risky project too.
The framework of this documentary is this: We are introduced to some young men that used to be actors in television or films from a very young age, at the same time we experience how did they got into the hollywood industry. Also, we hear their parents speaking, and describing the way that some well-known, rich men in the industry came very close to these children and in their families, present themselves as "trustworthy" friends. The film is based on interviews and some backtrack scenes which help us understand what happened in certain moments, when their managers, producers, became their predators.
The film exposes some of these powerful men, who in their case are already accused of sexual abuse in the past.
This documentary is a moment of truth, revealing the true identity of Hollywood and those who control it. Of course it is mentioned that this is only the tip of the iceberg. What does this mean? That it happens so often, so regurarly that is part of the job, it is part of the Hollywood price. It means its scale is countless. We can only refer to exploitation, abuse, rough treatment and fear only with one phrase: it's an OPEN SECRET.
What has been a true surprise and an ideal ending scene, is the phone dialogue between the child actor's manager and the young man in the other line of the phone.
In the end of the day, justice does not sentence the real criminals. They sentence justice to non-existence.
Takeshi-K
At time of writing this documentary still has been denied distribution through mainstream home video methods as well as video on demand online streaming. Before conspiracy theorists chime in, I imagine this is because of the litigation such a move might attract. It would be the distributors that would have to foot that bill. This is a shame because its an excellent introduction to the problem of pedophiles in the entertainment industry. The most famous name mentioned is X-Men director Bryan Singer who loves being around very young good looking boys. While its in doubt if he is guilty or not, his behavior comes across as really unwholesome and if guilty needs to be thrown in jail. This documentary, directed by Amy Berg, whose similar documentary on the subject, Deliver Us from Evil (2006) lifted the veil of pedophilia in the Catholic Church. So this is ground she knows only too well and she manages to avoid cliché, propaganda and aggressive judgement and instead focuses on the victims as it should. Its an important documentary and needs to be seen.
subxerogravity
The documentary about child abuse in Hollywood. It was laid out mostly like a conversation featuring former child actors, their parents and a few professionals on the subject telling their stories about how kids are targeted by pedophiles in the business, some of which were never convicted and still work in the industry todayIt's one of those subjects that should not be swept under the rug but exposed like a nerve for the world to see so things can be done about it. The movie is a little bit one sided however, as it focuses on only little boys who'd gone through sexual abuse as actors, and it neglects children as a whole. The movie talks about how pedophiles don't gender discriminate between boy and girls than apologizes for only using male subjects. But I noticed that the movie actually focus on one target, mainly a case that happen in the late 90s and everyone connected to that case including Bryan singer director of X-Men was pointed out ( I had previous knowledge of the case as a boy tried to sue singer some time ago for sexual misconduct)So the documentary does get a conversation going which is great but as a documentary I did not find it well rounded enough I must admit.
