Talking To The Screen
Capturing the Friedmans
Meet the Friedmans. Mom: Elaine. Dad: Arnold. Three Sons: David, Seth and Jesse. The typical Jewish Long Island family. Arnold is a nebbish science teacher at a local Great Neck school. Elaine doesn?t work. Though not exactly charming, they exude normalcy.
This is just the surface. Arnold has a serious problem. Arnold is a pedophile with a collection of child pornography magazines. Though a police sting operation, Arnold is caught trading kiddie porn through the mail. And the floodgates of hysteria are opened.
See, it turns out that Arnold, a previously respected teacher, has been teaching a computer class out of his basement. Arnold and Jesse have been in custody of dozens of neighborhood boys with no external supervision. To a parent there is no greater menace than a pedophile, no greater crime than child abuse. The parents of Great Neck trusted him with the welfare of their children for an hour and a half a week. Obviously, this situation must be investigated. Despite an absence of complaints of abuse from any child, the police question every student Arnold ever taught in his home.
So far, so good.
Except for the stigma that goes along with even an accusation of sexual abuse. Arnold is a confirmed and admitted pedophile. He?s been alone in a position of power with young boys. He must have abused them.
The community of Great Neck became so entrenched in the rage and hysteria of Arnold Friedman, all sense of rationality went out the window. Children were coerced by impassioned police interrogators to make accusations. At least one child was hypnotized before ?remembering? his heinous molestation experience. One child who attended ten computer classes each an hour and a half long, filed 31 complaints of sexual abuse. At each visit this child was allegedly raped and molested about three times. And no complaint was made before Arnold was shown to be a pedophile. No parent found physical evidence of any abuse.
?Capturing the Friedmans? is an eminently disturbing film. It describes terrifying menaces to society: child molestation, mass hysteria, and police corruption. No one in this documentary is likable. The Friedman family is completely dysfunctional, and while Arnold?s law troubles were what finally destroyed them, their problems were clearly preexistent.
The film is made even more difficult to watch by its ambiguity. In the end, it?s left nearly completely up to the viewer to decide if he or she believes the charges of molestation against Arnold and Jesse Friedman. Was the community of Great Neck victimized by the Friedman pedophiles or was a troubled but innocent man and his unwitting son railroaded by a hysterical mob? ?Capturing the Friedmans? makes a good case that many of the nearly two hundred charges against Arnold Friedman were fraudulent, suggesting that perhaps they?re all false. But what of the one child who (possibly) genuinely was molested during a computer class? If the film is successful at exonerating the Friedmans in public opinion, hasn?t it done a tremendous disservice to the child (or children) whose allegation was true?
?Capturing the Friedmans? is an emotionally taxing documentary to watch. But it successfully addresses an immensely controversial issue, without playing favorites. It continues to linger in my thoughts. If you find yourself a little too confident in society, this will bring you back down to earth.
This is just the surface. Arnold has a serious problem. Arnold is a pedophile with a collection of child pornography magazines. Though a police sting operation, Arnold is caught trading kiddie porn through the mail. And the floodgates of hysteria are opened.
See, it turns out that Arnold, a previously respected teacher, has been teaching a computer class out of his basement. Arnold and Jesse have been in custody of dozens of neighborhood boys with no external supervision. To a parent there is no greater menace than a pedophile, no greater crime than child abuse. The parents of Great Neck trusted him with the welfare of their children for an hour and a half a week. Obviously, this situation must be investigated. Despite an absence of complaints of abuse from any child, the police question every student Arnold ever taught in his home.
So far, so good.
Except for the stigma that goes along with even an accusation of sexual abuse. Arnold is a confirmed and admitted pedophile. He?s been alone in a position of power with young boys. He must have abused them.
The community of Great Neck became so entrenched in the rage and hysteria of Arnold Friedman, all sense of rationality went out the window. Children were coerced by impassioned police interrogators to make accusations. At least one child was hypnotized before ?remembering? his heinous molestation experience. One child who attended ten computer classes each an hour and a half long, filed 31 complaints of sexual abuse. At each visit this child was allegedly raped and molested about three times. And no complaint was made before Arnold was shown to be a pedophile. No parent found physical evidence of any abuse.
?Capturing the Friedmans? is an eminently disturbing film. It describes terrifying menaces to society: child molestation, mass hysteria, and police corruption. No one in this documentary is likable. The Friedman family is completely dysfunctional, and while Arnold?s law troubles were what finally destroyed them, their problems were clearly preexistent.
The film is made even more difficult to watch by its ambiguity. In the end, it?s left nearly completely up to the viewer to decide if he or she believes the charges of molestation against Arnold and Jesse Friedman. Was the community of Great Neck victimized by the Friedman pedophiles or was a troubled but innocent man and his unwitting son railroaded by a hysterical mob? ?Capturing the Friedmans? makes a good case that many of the nearly two hundred charges against Arnold Friedman were fraudulent, suggesting that perhaps they?re all false. But what of the one child who (possibly) genuinely was molested during a computer class? If the film is successful at exonerating the Friedmans in public opinion, hasn?t it done a tremendous disservice to the child (or children) whose allegation was true?
?Capturing the Friedmans? is an emotionally taxing documentary to watch. But it successfully addresses an immensely controversial issue, without playing favorites. It continues to linger in my thoughts. If you find yourself a little too confident in society, this will bring you back down to earth.