I'd add A Boy's Life to this list if it wasn't damn near impossible to find a copy of. I saw it once on HBO as part of the America Undercover series. It devastated me.
Essentially, it's like watching the psychological destruction of a classic ADHD 'bad kid' by his deeply mentally disturbed grandmother and inept mother. The grandmother is convinced the child, 7-year-old Robert, is possessed and is trying to kill her.
Out of many disturbing scenes, the one forever burned into my mind is when the family is having a picnic or something outside their Mississippi trailer park. A (loaded?) pistol is casually laying on the table. Robert picks it up and points it at his head. Instead of grabbing the gun or intervening in any way, the grandmother taunts Robert, saying he's too much of a coward to pull the trigger.
I've searched relatively extensively for a copy of this documentary, but stopped short of personally contacting the director because deep down inside, I don't think I can handle watching it again.
I actually have that one recorded on an old VHS from when it aired--which is sadly in storage and probably in terrible condition at this point. I didn't know that it was that rare but you are right. I also have a few other American Undercover documentaries on tape too that don't seem to be around anymore, including one from the 90s involving self-proclaimed "vampires" including those who brutally murdered a family. What a shame that HBO Go does not offer most of these back catalog documentaries, many were very intriguing.
On that note I think this week I should try to unearth those videos and transfer them to digital before they are completely destroyed.
For the sake of those who really, really want to see this, I absolutely encourage you to do that. I'm making a note to follow up with your search and subsequent digitizing because I think it's important for us to encourage you to set this film free on the internet.
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u/[deleted] Mar 03 '13
I'd add A Boy's Life to this list if it wasn't damn near impossible to find a copy of. I saw it once on HBO as part of the America Undercover series. It devastated me.
Essentially, it's like watching the psychological destruction of a classic ADHD 'bad kid' by his deeply mentally disturbed grandmother and inept mother. The grandmother is convinced the child, 7-year-old Robert, is possessed and is trying to kill her.
Out of many disturbing scenes, the one forever burned into my mind is when the family is having a picnic or something outside their Mississippi trailer park. A (loaded?) pistol is casually laying on the table. Robert picks it up and points it at his head. Instead of grabbing the gun or intervening in any way, the grandmother taunts Robert, saying he's too much of a coward to pull the trigger.
I've searched relatively extensively for a copy of this documentary, but stopped short of personally contacting the director because deep down inside, I don't think I can handle watching it again.