Capsule Film Reviews

1. The Devil's Playground. I have never been one to fall into the romantic spell of the Amish. Sure, there are a lot of things to admire about them: their sense of community, their self-reliance, their goofy Abe Lincoln beards, and, hey, really, who doesn't like buggies? However, when it comes down to it, they are just another Prottie sect with some particularly horrible notions: for instance, they hold the necessity of baptism but withold it from their children, they think that education above the eighth grade is bad because it leads to pride (not to mention the realization that their doctrines are a bit suspect), etc. One way or another, they are a fascinating bunch to observe. For instance, one of their peculiarities is that at the age of sixteen Amish kids are turned out in the world to live for awhile until they decide on their own to come back (a remarkable 90% do, but if you are sheltered from the world, woefully unequipped to deal with it, what else are you going to do?). This film is a documentary about that period in a young Amish's life, particularly focusing on a few of the kids as they go wild and then either come back or go on. I highly recommend this film.

2. A Mighty Wind. I finally got around to seeing this Christopher Guest spoof of the folk revival movement in the 1960's. It is split-your-sides-laughing funny, as we have come to expect from Guest. A couple of mannerisms of the era are perfectly captured, and the bickering passive-aggressive Boomer trio, the Folkmen. are such a right-on skewering that it isn't hard to see them as an actual band. And speaking of silly Abe Lincoln beards - there is one here, too. If you haven't seen this one yet, put it on the Netflix queue.