Had the pleasure to see The Forbidden Room, the latest by Guy Maddin, at the Wexner Center last night.
Here's the trailer.
This trailer has more going on in two minutes than most 90 minute films. It's the best film about lost films that may or may not have existed than you will ever see. Maddin is on his own beautiful road. If you love silent films, expressionist films, films of the thirties, or Hell, film in general it is a visual and mental treat.
Showing posts with label wexner center. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wexner center. Show all posts
Sunday, November 1, 2015
Friday, October 9, 2015
Hope within the real challenges
How to Dance in Ohio is an honest, sweet, intense and refreshing glimpse into the lives of three young women on the autism spectrum who are preparing for a formal dance. It is a very fair look at the quirks, anxieties and how human people on the spectrum are, they just need some help. And the help is provided by Columbus doctor Emilo Amigo and his staff who work with young adults and adults on the spectrum with coping and social skills.
There is a beauty in the young women in their preparations for the dance that the filmmakers show us with great skill. It’s also a rare look at women on the spectrum, and it’s necessary. A lot of the film had me nodding in agreement, in that yes I’m there too with the parents on their journey in dealing with the challenges their children have. It’s an accurate depiction of young people coming of age.
The documentary is making the festival rounds now and is set to air on HBO on October 26th. I’d like to give a sincere thanks to Chris Stults of the Wexner Center for the Arts Film and Video Department for letting me know about the screening. It was a packed house full of people who were subjects of the film. There was also a very entertaining and moving post-screening talk by the director, producer and two of the ladies who appeared in the film. It was an honor to be in the audience.
Here is a link to a featurette about the documentary and an interview with Alexandra Shiva, the director.
There is a beauty in the young women in their preparations for the dance that the filmmakers show us with great skill. It’s also a rare look at women on the spectrum, and it’s necessary. A lot of the film had me nodding in agreement, in that yes I’m there too with the parents on their journey in dealing with the challenges their children have. It’s an accurate depiction of young people coming of age.
The documentary is making the festival rounds now and is set to air on HBO on October 26th. I’d like to give a sincere thanks to Chris Stults of the Wexner Center for the Arts Film and Video Department for letting me know about the screening. It was a packed house full of people who were subjects of the film. There was also a very entertaining and moving post-screening talk by the director, producer and two of the ladies who appeared in the film. It was an honor to be in the audience.
Here is a link to a featurette about the documentary and an interview with Alexandra Shiva, the director.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Chain gangs, gangsters and gun molls
Courtsey of the Wexner Center we got to see a couple more pre-code movies last night.
The first was Laughter in Hell, a dark little film starring Pat O'Brien who gets married, becomes a railroad engineer who gets married. He finds out his wife is having an affair with one of his childhood enemies then kills them both. He's sentenced to a life of hard labor and his warden is the brother of the man he killed. Yes, great fun. I was pleased to see Merna Kennedy in this film. She played the Girl in Charlie Chaplin's "The Circus." She was only 36 when she died of a heart attack.
Could not find a still from Laughter in Hell with her in it. The movie also included a mass hanging of black prisoners and had a very I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang feel, even if the main character was a honest-to-god double murderer.
The other film we saw was Little Giant, with the amazing Edward G. Robinson as a Chicago gangster who goes straight when prohibition ends. He moves to California to set himself up in what he thinks is high class society. Hijinks ensue when he meets a family whose motives are not entirely genuine. In what was Robinson's first comedy, he chews up and devours the screen with great delight. Mary Astor is quite charming as a real estate agent with a back story
I mean really charming. She had a tough life. A child star who was forced into acting then ripped off by her parents. She had scandals, breakdowns and losing bouts with alcohol. Some say she was too old to play Brigid O'Shaughnessy in The Maltese Falcon. I call bullshit on that.
A fine actress who really did not want to be there, thanks to her parents.
The first was Laughter in Hell, a dark little film starring Pat O'Brien who gets married, becomes a railroad engineer who gets married. He finds out his wife is having an affair with one of his childhood enemies then kills them both. He's sentenced to a life of hard labor and his warden is the brother of the man he killed. Yes, great fun. I was pleased to see Merna Kennedy in this film. She played the Girl in Charlie Chaplin's "The Circus." She was only 36 when she died of a heart attack.
Could not find a still from Laughter in Hell with her in it. The movie also included a mass hanging of black prisoners and had a very I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang feel, even if the main character was a honest-to-god double murderer.
The other film we saw was Little Giant, with the amazing Edward G. Robinson as a Chicago gangster who goes straight when prohibition ends. He moves to California to set himself up in what he thinks is high class society. Hijinks ensue when he meets a family whose motives are not entirely genuine. In what was Robinson's first comedy, he chews up and devours the screen with great delight. Mary Astor is quite charming as a real estate agent with a back story
I mean really charming. She had a tough life. A child star who was forced into acting then ripped off by her parents. She had scandals, breakdowns and losing bouts with alcohol. Some say she was too old to play Brigid O'Shaughnessy in The Maltese Falcon. I call bullshit on that.
A fine actress who really did not want to be there, thanks to her parents.
Friday, December 7, 2012
Discoveries and stuff
Last night we went to the Wexner Center to see a screening of Where are my Children, a 1916 message film. It's a film that preaches a very pro birth control and an equally passionate anti-abortion stance. Thing is, in 1916, available birth control was condoms, if available, and the horrid movement of eugenics. Of course abstinence is always an option.
The plot involves a district attorney, who is trying to prosecute a man for selling birth control information and his wife, who, to keep her social life intact, seems to go to the abortion doctor as much as the grocery store. There's tension, some interesting special effects that call Ally McBeal's dancing baby to mind. It's a 96 year old film that still holds up very well.
The film was directed by Lois Weber, a very prolific director of the silent era who operated her own studio before women had the right to vote. Sadly, most of her films are considered lost. I hope to see more of her work, if I can find it.
Accompanying the film live was local musician Derek DiCenzo, who I recognized as being one of Jandek's band when he came though a few years back. Had a chance to briefly talk to him about that amazing experience and how hard it was to play to a very heavily plotted film.
The imitable Guy Maddin came to town to introduce this film. He's been to the Wexner Center six times now, always good to have him here.
Had to miss the second feature, Little Man, What Now? which looked fascinating, but we had to meet an old college friend who was in town on business.
It's always a bit awkward to meet with someone who had not seen in over twenty years, but when you glimpse into each others lives on Facebook you can find something to talk about.
Today on Facebook one of my friends posted this video.
You ever become an instant fan? I did. What really jazzed me up is I found out they're opening for The Who, and we're already going to see them here in February.
These guys are good.
While posting these videos another person in the thread mentioned another band called The Heavy. Did not realize I was familiar with one of their songs already.
Really cool to discover two new bands in the last weeks of the year.
The plot involves a district attorney, who is trying to prosecute a man for selling birth control information and his wife, who, to keep her social life intact, seems to go to the abortion doctor as much as the grocery store. There's tension, some interesting special effects that call Ally McBeal's dancing baby to mind. It's a 96 year old film that still holds up very well.
The film was directed by Lois Weber, a very prolific director of the silent era who operated her own studio before women had the right to vote. Sadly, most of her films are considered lost. I hope to see more of her work, if I can find it.
Accompanying the film live was local musician Derek DiCenzo, who I recognized as being one of Jandek's band when he came though a few years back. Had a chance to briefly talk to him about that amazing experience and how hard it was to play to a very heavily plotted film.
The imitable Guy Maddin came to town to introduce this film. He's been to the Wexner Center six times now, always good to have him here.
Had to miss the second feature, Little Man, What Now? which looked fascinating, but we had to meet an old college friend who was in town on business.
It's always a bit awkward to meet with someone who had not seen in over twenty years, but when you glimpse into each others lives on Facebook you can find something to talk about.
Today on Facebook one of my friends posted this video.
You ever become an instant fan? I did. What really jazzed me up is I found out they're opening for The Who, and we're already going to see them here in February.
These guys are good.
While posting these videos another person in the thread mentioned another band called The Heavy. Did not realize I was familiar with one of their songs already.
Really cool to discover two new bands in the last weeks of the year.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
He is Shaggy with Coin
This weekend the Wexner Center is holding its annual family film festival. A silent is usually screened and this year was no different. They selected three silent shorts and had local band Super Desserts provide the soundtrack.
The first short was Movie Night, with Charley Chase. I admit to being unfamiliar with Chase's work. You do not see it screened much and his work is overshadowed by Chaplin's and Keaton's even though he was quite popular in the late twenties.
It's a period comedy of Chase taking his family out to the movies. His son needs to dress younger to get in at a cheaper price, there's a Jewish joke and a couple of people with cases of the hiccups. Super Desserts really captured the feel of the film and delivered a very authentic soundtrack. I thought this was their strongest interpretation of the night. A good start.
The second film was Go West, this had nothing to do with the Keaton feature.
Monkey western.
This was a group of trained animals called the Dippy Do Dads, who were involved in about twenty Hal Roach produced shorts in the silent era. The Monkeys drank, smoked, rode goats and were probably horribly treated. I'd bet a number of these monkeys were in some of the Our Gang shorts.
The finale was the classic Laurel & Hardy short Big Business.
The boys are selling Christmas trees in July. They come to the great James Finlayson's house. Mayhem ensues. One of the great silent comedy shorts. Super Desserts did some nifty foley work involving a tree stuck in a door. I was teasing them on twitter this week but had to go up and praise them after the show. I asked how they prepped and they told me they watched the films over and over, took lots of notes with cue points. They did a fantastic job.
It was a good night out. We took my son, the program was only an hour. Hard to tell what he got out of it, but he stayed in his seat the entire time with no trouble at all. It was his second time seeing a film at the Wex, maybe Godard will be next for him?
The first short was Movie Night, with Charley Chase. I admit to being unfamiliar with Chase's work. You do not see it screened much and his work is overshadowed by Chaplin's and Keaton's even though he was quite popular in the late twenties.
It's a period comedy of Chase taking his family out to the movies. His son needs to dress younger to get in at a cheaper price, there's a Jewish joke and a couple of people with cases of the hiccups. Super Desserts really captured the feel of the film and delivered a very authentic soundtrack. I thought this was their strongest interpretation of the night. A good start.
The second film was Go West, this had nothing to do with the Keaton feature.
Monkey western.
This was a group of trained animals called the Dippy Do Dads, who were involved in about twenty Hal Roach produced shorts in the silent era. The Monkeys drank, smoked, rode goats and were probably horribly treated. I'd bet a number of these monkeys were in some of the Our Gang shorts.
The finale was the classic Laurel & Hardy short Big Business.
The boys are selling Christmas trees in July. They come to the great James Finlayson's house. Mayhem ensues. One of the great silent comedy shorts. Super Desserts did some nifty foley work involving a tree stuck in a door. I was teasing them on twitter this week but had to go up and praise them after the show. I asked how they prepped and they told me they watched the films over and over, took lots of notes with cue points. They did a fantastic job.
It was a good night out. We took my son, the program was only an hour. Hard to tell what he got out of it, but he stayed in his seat the entire time with no trouble at all. It was his second time seeing a film at the Wex, maybe Godard will be next for him?
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Ernie, Those Sheep are Tap Dancing
Finally got up the nerve to take my son out to see a movie. The Wexner Center is having it's annual kids weekend and this afternoon they showed Sesame Street Sings!
It has Sesame Street, the muppets, music, I can tolerate those things and he likes them. Let's see what happens if we take the act out of the living room. Plus, it only cost two bucks a piece so if the mission had to be aborted we would not be out much coin.
Speaking of coin, Laurie Berkner is coming to The Palace in February, $33 bucks to sit in the balcony. For those prices she's not building a wall on stage. Sorry, not buying into that!
Got our tickets and gave his to him. Told him to give the ticket to the taker. She tore it up and I told him to take it back. He looked so cute holding the ticket, I teared up a bit.
Found a row toward the back and I let him choose a seat. He picked the aisle.
We only waited a short time before the film started. He amazed me. Not sure how much he paid attention because he was pretty quiet and not singing along. I have to say he was very well behaved. After about an hour he got a bit fidgety, but that was because it was running too long. If he did not like what he was seeing he would have got up and walked around. But he stayed in his seat for 82 minutes.
Tried to get him to eat some celebratory Dark Chocolate Jeni's Ice Cream by calling it pudding, but he was not having any of it.
As I was driving there I realized I forgot my bag with his diapers in it. So I obsessed about that a bit. Luckily there was no poop until he went upstairs when we got home. Not in the toilet though.
It has Sesame Street, the muppets, music, I can tolerate those things and he likes them. Let's see what happens if we take the act out of the living room. Plus, it only cost two bucks a piece so if the mission had to be aborted we would not be out much coin.
Speaking of coin, Laurie Berkner is coming to The Palace in February, $33 bucks to sit in the balcony. For those prices she's not building a wall on stage. Sorry, not buying into that!
Got our tickets and gave his to him. Told him to give the ticket to the taker. She tore it up and I told him to take it back. He looked so cute holding the ticket, I teared up a bit.
Found a row toward the back and I let him choose a seat. He picked the aisle.
We only waited a short time before the film started. He amazed me. Not sure how much he paid attention because he was pretty quiet and not singing along. I have to say he was very well behaved. After about an hour he got a bit fidgety, but that was because it was running too long. If he did not like what he was seeing he would have got up and walked around. But he stayed in his seat for 82 minutes.
Tried to get him to eat some celebratory Dark Chocolate Jeni's Ice Cream by calling it pudding, but he was not having any of it.
As I was driving there I realized I forgot my bag with his diapers in it. So I obsessed about that a bit. Luckily there was no poop until he went upstairs when we got home. Not in the toilet though.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Things I Have Meant To Say
The progress bar is still as the Disk Warrior does its thing. It has not moved for about thirty six hours now. The number of broken files increases while the likelihood of replacing the hard drive by this weekend goes up. Accepting losing three plus years of work is not easy.
Off to a culture shaping retreat for work today and tomorrow. It's not something I'm being cynical about attending. I'm just anxious as being around a group of strangers and discussing anything with them face to face scares the crap out of me. I do not think we'll end up holding hands and singing Kumbaya or getting Block O tattoos on our biceps, but I'm optimistic for positive results.
As a bitter and disgruntled ex-employee, I grumble when I see a lawn sign, billboard or see other propaganda regarding Issue 4. Let me state here that I am not against it in the least. In fact I will be voting for it, and if you live in Columbus, you should too. If you want reasons, ask me and I'll go off as to why. If you want me to put a sign on my lawn or change my Facebook profile picture go elsewhere. I'm putting as much effort into their campaign as their efforts into my career advancement when I worked there. Yes, there are issues.
My son's IEP meeting is next week. Having a special needs kid is hard when it comes to educational expectations. At this point, limited conversation is seen as a big step. Pooping in the toilet would be nice. Slowly, he's beginning to sleep thought the night regularly - that is massive progress.
Got to love the Wexner Center. Last night they brought in Joe Dante to introduce Matinee. It's a fun movie that was very overlooked about Sci-Fi movies of the fifties and the Cuban Missile Crisis. And Mant, the film within the film about a half man - half ant, was much funnier than I remember. Dante was very gracious and had some important things to say about the state of horror films and today's film in general. He spoke like Scorcese's calmer cousin. Very entertaining.
Off to a culture shaping retreat for work today and tomorrow. It's not something I'm being cynical about attending. I'm just anxious as being around a group of strangers and discussing anything with them face to face scares the crap out of me. I do not think we'll end up holding hands and singing Kumbaya or getting Block O tattoos on our biceps, but I'm optimistic for positive results.
As a bitter and disgruntled ex-employee, I grumble when I see a lawn sign, billboard or see other propaganda regarding Issue 4. Let me state here that I am not against it in the least. In fact I will be voting for it, and if you live in Columbus, you should too. If you want reasons, ask me and I'll go off as to why. If you want me to put a sign on my lawn or change my Facebook profile picture go elsewhere. I'm putting as much effort into their campaign as their efforts into my career advancement when I worked there. Yes, there are issues.
My son's IEP meeting is next week. Having a special needs kid is hard when it comes to educational expectations. At this point, limited conversation is seen as a big step. Pooping in the toilet would be nice. Slowly, he's beginning to sleep thought the night regularly - that is massive progress.
Got to love the Wexner Center. Last night they brought in Joe Dante to introduce Matinee. It's a fun movie that was very overlooked about Sci-Fi movies of the fifties and the Cuban Missile Crisis. And Mant, the film within the film about a half man - half ant, was much funnier than I remember. Dante was very gracious and had some important things to say about the state of horror films and today's film in general. He spoke like Scorcese's calmer cousin. Very entertaining.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
You Cannibal, You Meat Eater...
It can be a drag when two events you want to attend happen at the same time. I bought two tickets to the Mumford & Sons show before I found out about my friend's barbecue. I would have eaten the $12 tickets but I really wanted to see this band.
You never know what to expect when you see a sold out show by a very hyped group. Will the crowd be a bunch of people there just to talk through the show and be seen? Will the band be road weary and cynical of their own newly found fame? Luckily neither of these were the case and Mumford & Sons met all expectations.
The opening band was an Australian septet called The Middle East. I was thrilled that they were opening because I've heard a couple of their songs and liked what I heard. Onstage they presented themselves rather seriously with their quiet, folksy songs that were more akin to a sit down show rather than the setting of standing on the Mershon stage. I was more impressed by their louder songs, and they could make a glorious noise when they wanted, than the softer tunes.
While waiting for the headliner I was approached by the reviewer for the local paper, whi I used to work with at the bookstore. We swapped opinions and waited for the show to start.
The band came out, opened with Sigh No More and it was off to the races. These guys can play, they can sing. I have not heard such great four part harmonies live since Moxy Fruvous. Yes, it's an odd comparison.
I hope the band does not paint themselves into a corner, but a formula for quite a few of their songs is to start out slow, then go full throttle. While it is exciting to hear, you want a band to show some versatility. They are combating this, during one new song Marcus (the lead singer) went behind the drum kit and showed some chops. This caused the local critic to tell me he did not expect that and had not seen that since he saw Jack White play drums for Goober & the Peas about fifteen years ago. This kind of freaked me out since I was at the show he told me about. So I can now say I've seen Jack White play before he became the White Stripes.
The sold out crowd was really well behaved and respectful to both bands, each of whom made mention of the pleasure of hearing themselves play without loud talking going on. It was my second time seeing a show on the Mershon stage and the sound is excellent. We're getting old though, it's hard to stand for three hours. My wife is not a fan of the group, but she appreciates when a band could play well. She kind of squealed when Marcus played a thin body electric. She likes good gear.
While it was sad to miss the party, seeing this band for $12 is never going to happen again, and I'm very pleased to have made that decision. I even bought a t-shirt, something I have not done since seeing Robyn Hitchcock about eighteen years ago. That's how good Mumford & Sons are. They're selling out their shows, hitting the festivals, and will be playing much bigger venues the next time around.
You never know what to expect when you see a sold out show by a very hyped group. Will the crowd be a bunch of people there just to talk through the show and be seen? Will the band be road weary and cynical of their own newly found fame? Luckily neither of these were the case and Mumford & Sons met all expectations.
The opening band was an Australian septet called The Middle East. I was thrilled that they were opening because I've heard a couple of their songs and liked what I heard. Onstage they presented themselves rather seriously with their quiet, folksy songs that were more akin to a sit down show rather than the setting of standing on the Mershon stage. I was more impressed by their louder songs, and they could make a glorious noise when they wanted, than the softer tunes.
While waiting for the headliner I was approached by the reviewer for the local paper, whi I used to work with at the bookstore. We swapped opinions and waited for the show to start.
The band came out, opened with Sigh No More and it was off to the races. These guys can play, they can sing. I have not heard such great four part harmonies live since Moxy Fruvous. Yes, it's an odd comparison.
I hope the band does not paint themselves into a corner, but a formula for quite a few of their songs is to start out slow, then go full throttle. While it is exciting to hear, you want a band to show some versatility. They are combating this, during one new song Marcus (the lead singer) went behind the drum kit and showed some chops. This caused the local critic to tell me he did not expect that and had not seen that since he saw Jack White play drums for Goober & the Peas about fifteen years ago. This kind of freaked me out since I was at the show he told me about. So I can now say I've seen Jack White play before he became the White Stripes.
The sold out crowd was really well behaved and respectful to both bands, each of whom made mention of the pleasure of hearing themselves play without loud talking going on. It was my second time seeing a show on the Mershon stage and the sound is excellent. We're getting old though, it's hard to stand for three hours. My wife is not a fan of the group, but she appreciates when a band could play well. She kind of squealed when Marcus played a thin body electric. She likes good gear.
While it was sad to miss the party, seeing this band for $12 is never going to happen again, and I'm very pleased to have made that decision. I even bought a t-shirt, something I have not done since seeing Robyn Hitchcock about eighteen years ago. That's how good Mumford & Sons are. They're selling out their shows, hitting the festivals, and will be playing much bigger venues the next time around.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Spring Swaps Snow for Leaves
Mumford and Sons is a London quartet who released their first record, Sigh No More in the UK last year. It received its US release last month. It's really good stuff.
They're coming to the Wexner Center on May 22nd. I'm stoked. These guys are going to be huge.
They're coming to the Wexner Center on May 22nd. I'm stoked. These guys are going to be huge.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Crushed my Life Savers
My wife and I went out to see one of her favorite movies on the big screen last night. It's also one of the first movies I saw several times, thanks to the early days of HBO.
What's Up Doc? Is a lovely tribute to the screwball comedies of the 1930's. A sell out crowd at the Wexner Center laughed loudly at a thirty eight year old film that is as fresh and funny as it was when released.
One of my favorite bit actors, Liam Dunn, is in this film as the very stressed out judge. The courtroom scene is one of my favorites in the film. Here's a still from him in Young Frankenstein.
He also played the news vendor in Silent Movie.
An added treat to last night's screening was the appearance of the director himself, Peter Bogdanovich. He also showed up at a reception before the film. I wanted to get a picture with him and continue the series of photographs with directors but I broke out with the shys, so this picture will have to do.
Spot the dork, and it's not the earnest young man with the notebook.
Bogdanovich was very gracious and told many stories about old Hollywood. He was adept at doing many impressions as well, doing Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart and a hysterical version of Howard Hawks laughing. I suspect he also knows a lot of stories that he does not tell. He looks better than his seventy years would suggest, but moved slowly, with some frailty.
After the film we went to Jeni's. She has a few new flavors out, including a scrumptious Gooey Butter Cake.
Working on the kid to put things in the toilet. It's not easy.
What's Up Doc? Is a lovely tribute to the screwball comedies of the 1930's. A sell out crowd at the Wexner Center laughed loudly at a thirty eight year old film that is as fresh and funny as it was when released.
One of my favorite bit actors, Liam Dunn, is in this film as the very stressed out judge. The courtroom scene is one of my favorites in the film. Here's a still from him in Young Frankenstein.
He also played the news vendor in Silent Movie.
An added treat to last night's screening was the appearance of the director himself, Peter Bogdanovich. He also showed up at a reception before the film. I wanted to get a picture with him and continue the series of photographs with directors but I broke out with the shys, so this picture will have to do.
Spot the dork, and it's not the earnest young man with the notebook.
Bogdanovich was very gracious and told many stories about old Hollywood. He was adept at doing many impressions as well, doing Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart and a hysterical version of Howard Hawks laughing. I suspect he also knows a lot of stories that he does not tell. He looks better than his seventy years would suggest, but moved slowly, with some frailty.
After the film we went to Jeni's. She has a few new flavors out, including a scrumptious Gooey Butter Cake.
Working on the kid to put things in the toilet. It's not easy.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Rowan Named the Reindeer
I'm rooting for the Gateway Film Center, which is now being operated in partnership with the Wexner Center. The complex has had two management teams operate the theaters in its brief existence, with negligible success. They plan on continuing to show mainstream films but will also dedicate a couple of screens to art house fare, and show the movies for longer periods of time. Last night they had their official opening. My wife and I then went to see The Horse Boy.
It's the story of Rowan, a four year old boy with autism. His father, after Rowan bonds with a next door neighbor's horse, comes up with the idea to bring him to Mongolia, where the nomadic shamen will help to heal his condition. Rowan has a number of behavioral issues, some of which hit close to home for me, all of them shown in the film - although we were never told why he sometimes wore band aids on his eyebrows - to keep from scratching himself perhaps?
The film is very powerful, and I'm sure is going to make a lot of well heeled parents of autistic children head to Mongolia and put them on horses.
That's not what The Horse Boy is about though. It is about a desperate family, that loves their child, who will go to the ends of the Earth to give their son a chance to participate in the same world we do.
The documentary is not about a cure for autism, but about hope, and finding it in an unlikely but perfect place.
It's the story of Rowan, a four year old boy with autism. His father, after Rowan bonds with a next door neighbor's horse, comes up with the idea to bring him to Mongolia, where the nomadic shamen will help to heal his condition. Rowan has a number of behavioral issues, some of which hit close to home for me, all of them shown in the film - although we were never told why he sometimes wore band aids on his eyebrows - to keep from scratching himself perhaps?
The film is very powerful, and I'm sure is going to make a lot of well heeled parents of autistic children head to Mongolia and put them on horses.
That's not what The Horse Boy is about though. It is about a desperate family, that loves their child, who will go to the ends of the Earth to give their son a chance to participate in the same world we do.
The documentary is not about a cure for autism, but about hope, and finding it in an unlikely but perfect place.
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