The subjects of the Crafting Truth chapters you read last week and are reading this one focus on Authority and Responsibility and how those terms apply to documentary making. With that in mind, please watch the polarizing and provocative The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia on Netflix Instant and tell me as specifically as possible what you think the director Julien Nitzberg's approach to the material is? Is he being Responsible in his portrayal of the White family? If so, how? If not, how not? And how does Nitzberg (a friend of mine from college who I might try and get to Skype in to our class) show Authority in this film - or does he? Please answer these questions and remember to provide an example of two from the film itself to support your claims.
Additionally, I'd like to know what (or whose) interest you think this film serves. What impact might it have on those watching it (like you)? Does it take into account the welfare of the people represented? If so, how? And finally, is the film Authentic or not? If so, how? If not, why not?
I look forward to hearing everything you have to say about this, especially in terms of Responsibility, Evidence, Authority and Authenticity - by no later than 9 am on Wednesday morning, of course.
I think the director Julien Nitzberg's approach to the film was to expose the White Family for who they really are. I think he is being responsible in his portrayal because he doesn't just interview the family and show the family's everyday life. He goes around the town they live in and interview lawyers and citizens and find out what the town thinks of them. What I got from the film is that this family may not be the best behaved, have the best morals, and may make more bad decisions than anyone I've ever known but they're still a family and most of them do care for each other and all love each other. The filmmaker shows authority in this film by asking what a family member will do in order to get something done. For example, anytime someone didn't get what they wanted they always used the excuse , "I'm going to go kill whoever it takes to make me happy." The White's really aren't afraid of anything or anyone. They don't let the law get in the way of them solving an issue. If it means jail time, who cares, they solved the problem. When Tyler's mom found out her husband cheated on her, she went out to go slit his throat and ended up stabbing him. She's been to jail before and wasn't afraid if she was going to go back. She got her justice by stabbing him.
ReplyDeleteBefore I talk about who this film might interest, I have to say, not all people from West Virginia act like this family. There are many civilized people like you and I that live there. This film might interest somebody from West Virginia or someone that might want to know more about the people that live there. This film is what I like to consider a piece that exposes somebody. It takes a fairly well known family in a small community and introduces them to the world outside their community. It allows everyone else to become apart of their lives (temporarily). I think the film was in fact authentic. I've seen lifestyles like this before. I didn't grow up like this (luckily) but I know people who did and this film felt very authentic.
Wow! What a family! This film has aroused mixed emotions within me as to the motivation the director Julien Nitzberg's had in his documentation of the White family. Professor, I will answer your question as to whether the filmmaker acted responsible in his portrayal of the White family as best as I can.
ReplyDeleteI watched the film Sunday afternoon and I have given myself time to digest what I viewed and I have come to the personal conclusion that it is a very fine line as to how I feel. The way the director went about presenting the characters and certain situations about family members in the film gave me the sense that it was a huge farce. The way characters were framed on the screen when they first appeared in the narrative and the music that accompained these images made me feel as though I was watching a sort of Jerry Springer reality show.
There was a scene that I found to be deeply troubling and that was when Kirk had just given birth to a child. Afterwards she began sniffing drugs up her nose in the hospital room with another woman. Come to find out Child Protective Services took the child away but if that didn't happen I wonder if the director would have intervened. I personally feel that for me that would have crossed an ethics boundary and we all have to be the judge of what that is but the pervasive use of drugs and the presence of children made that a bit problematic.
Another issue though small in comparison to the larger problems is that after they left the hospital, the went and partied at a bar and Kirk had left to use the washroom and the filmmaker is there with his camera capturing her on the toilet. I was sitting there asking myself was that necessary because I found it to be rather pointless.
A lot of unfortunate things have happened in the family but beyond the fact we see people who exist on the very fringe I found there to be nothing worth liking or redemptive in any of the characters and this is mostly due to the directors deliberate juxtaposition of images.
To a large extent it appeared to be just an observational documentary but I feel that the director had a very strong opinion on what he felt about the Whites and that is what appears on screen. There was absolutely nothing funny about what was shown. At times I found it very difficult to see some of the horror but at the same time I felt that the director could have gone deeper to show us why. He didn't go as deep as he could have gone and that is what breaks my heart.
I first want to say that I absolutely loved this film and this family, it felt so authentic to me. I also feel this reality needs to be brought to more and more audiences, not just because it’s a white family but it’s an American family at that. The director in a sense is responsible for the portrayal of the family due to the direction he lead them in but I don’t think he influenced them that much in actually developing each character. I believe this family is naturally in their element and felt extremely comfortable or just didn’t give a fuck that they were being filmed. This film should interest anybody who is curious about how all people interact and build relationships, which I think most are interested in. Not all people from West Virginia are like this particular family but I’m sure there are some who can relate from all over and of all races as well. This family reminded me of the TV series “Shameless” on Showtime, which I love because you lose a sense of color and race while watching this family deal with bigger problems in holding their family together. The characters were fearless and had some sense of loyalty to their own happiness and would do anything it took for them to get whatever it is that they wanted. I’ve seen families like this and always admired how dysfunctional they were they remained loyal as a family. I think it somewhat ironic how families who have less problems then them but lose a sense of foundation within the family.
ReplyDeleteI am certainly glad that’s over. It is safe to say that the White family was utterly repulsing to me in every way imaginable. Kudos to Julien Nitzberg for both dealing with them, and portraying them in such a way that made me feel so strongly about the content. Nitzberg really takes a hands off approach with this one, and it works wonders. This ‘unadulterated’ documentary is brilliant, and really fits the methods with which I film. Nitzberg is being absolutely responsible in his portrayal because this is who they are. If anything he made them look better than they are, which is really saying a lot. I really loved his use of music throughout the film. It’s funny more often than not which adds to the zaniness of what is being captured on screen, but sad at times, especially dealing with the addiction side of things. One of my favorite shots in the film was the initial interview with a mother swearing left, and right, and speaking of addiction, all while her son plays dangerously right beside her. This scene really grabbed my attention, “woah, these fiends aren’t the only people they are putting at risk...”
ReplyDeleteThe film suits the interests of a variety of people, namely the family, people associated with the family that may live close by/have heard stories, and those people who think there are no problems in the world. The impact is intensely depressing. It made me really look at my life, and what I have, especially how lucky I am with my own family. It definitely takes into account the welfare of the people represented, and I’m sure they had a hand in the scenes of rehabilitation. The film is super authentic. The hands off approach Nitzberg takes is ideal, and plays like a family video. He purely captures how the Whites are as if there is no camera there at all.
I think the director is being responsible to his subjects, because they flat out say that they want people to see and hear them. Granted, the subjects are constantly drinking and doing drugs and might not know what they’re saying, but they’re adults and I think their story is a strong warning to the audience. You can hear the filmmaker talking to his subjects about what they’re saying and clarifying if they want it on video.
ReplyDeleteI thought it was funny/interesting when the camera was in the bathroom stall with the woman the night before she goes to rehab. The only part that I don’t think should be on the film is when she flashes her boobs the same night.
Friends of the family give their side about Jesco and his family being affected by the fame and the drugs. Also hearing about Boone County as a whole being like a black hole of despair it makes the viewer feel pity. This is a campaign of awareness for poor white (Caucasian) families that we sometimes might forget about. I think it is also a successful message to make me never want to mess around with substance abuse. The film was able to do all of this while staying authentic.
silence...eyebrows raised and a slow pondering nod.. That was my response after finishing the film. Julien Nitzberg is quite a guy for subjecting himself to spending extended periods of time with the White family. Having grown up in an extremely diverse community, both in a socioeconomic sense and in culture, I could not help but compare some of the things I witnessed in the film to things that I've seen or even experienced in person. Dont get me wrong, I dont think my family could ever be fairly compared to the White's, or at least their "face value" issues, but I believe that whenever someone watches a film about another family they cant help but try to identify with them in as many ways as possible, even if it is subconsciously. For some reason, I felt myself constantly thinking about how no matter what the Whites were going through, they always suck together- That is something I have experienced. What I have not experienced, however, and which also drew my attention to the director's (lack of) authority, was the sheer amount of substance abuse and violence that was demonstrated and/or discussed. My jaw dropped when I saw drugs being inhaled IN the delivery room! Should Nitzberg and his crew have stepped in (or did they secretly off camera)? I believe that as a filmmaker it must have been painful for Nitzberg to simply sit back and watch some of these things go down- but hey, thats the toll you pay for being a true observationalist documentarian. And thats what makes me think that Nitzberg is, in fact, being responsible regardless of what others may say. He is not a guy in the room because he wants to be with these people, he is a guy in the room who is there to observe and show what he sees, and he did just that. I do not believe that the Whites acted the way they did because the camera was there, I believe that is simply who they are. Nitzberg would be irresponsible if he tried to portray that in a different way. He presented the authentic White family exactly the way they are, without any filter. I believe this film is best received by people who are in a much different (and more prominent) living situation than the Whites, simply because it is almost intriguing to see people living in such a taboo environment. I think (and I could be wrong) that this film would not be as appealing to people who face the same internal and external issues as the whites because it is just a projection of themselves on screen. All in all, I know a few people who might be interested in watching this, but it is definitely not something I would show to my parents.
ReplyDeleteI think Julien Nitzberg approached this project very carefully. Some may say he exploited the family, but I think they were at that point far before this documentary. The Whites have been local legends for a long time, and the issue of that is even discussed within the film. Their drug addictions, violence, and poverty weren’t created in the film. Julien did a great job with the family tree animation. Towards the beginning of the film, we get to see images of all of the family members that didn’t make it to be middle-aged. Introducing the White family that way really gives us the idea that this family is wild and reckless. In opposition to what would be this “exploitation of the Whites” I’d say Nitzberg captures the idea that people are almost feeding the family’s problems by giving them support. However, he does not show any authority in this film. As a documentarian, he simply captures the lives of the Whites for one year. We hear very little of him interviewing any of them and none of the events seem to be controlled by him. If anything, he is silent when most people would have to put their foot down. A situation that I would personally have a hard time keeping quiet about is when one of the young boys is sticking up both middle fingers to the camera. His mom is just letting him do that and is almost encouraging it. Then there is a little family get-together where the little children are smoking cigarettes. Overall, I’d say Nitzberg just sat behind the camera and followed the family around. That is what makes this style of documentary so attractive to the audience. There seem to be no fabrications like a reality t.v. show
ReplyDeleteThis film, I don’t know where to start. It was entertaining I’ll give you that. I’m not really sure if Nitzberg was responsible or not. I feel like the reason he choose the whites was because they would be entertaining. And with that some might say that Nitzberg was exploiting them and giving them a bad name. At the same time I don’t think the whites really care at all how they are perceived. In fact I think they kind of enjoy being looked at that way. There were times when I felt that they did things just because the camera was there and just to give themselves a “bad to the bone” look. Like in the hospital right when she was done giving birth she snorted some crack. Maybe this still would have happened if the cameras weren’t present but as she left to go into the bathroom she looks over toward the camera and smiled, almost as to say “look what I did.” Or the time the little boy kept swearing and then Sue bob yelled at him kind of jokingly then laughed at the camera. In these moments the Whites take authority of what is going to be filmed. You see them take authority over and over again in little moments like these. It seems as though the filmmakers are just along for the ride, which I enjoyed. This in fact made me feel like the film was telling the truth, like it was authentic. I believed what was happening.
ReplyDeleteThe only time I can remember feeling that Nitzberg was in authority was during certain interviews about past experience. For example when we find out that Brandon tried to kill his uncle and had a shoot out with the police. I’m not sure if they would have brought that up on their own but I don’t think Brandon mind talking about it. Authoriy from Nitzberg can also be seen in certain sound effects, the folk music, the western like gun noises when they talk about someone that was shoot to death all give the film a hill billy sort of feel. This was obviously intentional but without these things I still think that the whites would have come off the same. They just gave the film a more light hearted feeling.
So I think that Nitzberg was responsible, I could see why some people would say the opposite but I think he’s fine. Anytime filmmakers come out with a film that shows a way of life that seems reckless or even just different from the main stream someone is going to say that they’ve crossed the line. I think it’s one thing to make someone look a way that they are not or broadcast privacy but this isn’t what this film is doing. Nitzberg is simply showing how the Whites live.
I’m having a hard time answering your questioned about who this film was made for. My initial reaction would be to say that it was made for the Jack-Ass watching, care-free “YOLO” high school college kind of audience. Then the ending makes me want to say that it was made to say something about this way of life. If Sue Bob didn’t lose he baby I think I would questioned it but because of that I’m not really sure.
I don't think that the director was irresponsible with his authority while representing these subjects. The subjects were willing and fully understood that their actions were being documented. These people, in their own words, simply did not give a fuck.
ReplyDeleteThis film serves many purposes. Some people watch it like they watch "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo"-- look at these disgusting white trash people. Impoverished, left behind by the system, stuck in a cycle of addiction/abuse/violence. But they're ugly and they talk funny so we're allowed to laugh at them and it makes us feel better.
The film also compares the lives of the Whites to the Coal-miner mentality. The town in West Virginia was founded on coal mines... someone you've never met getting rich off of your back-breaking and extremely dangerous labor that you get paid near slave wages to do. The White family just kind of got stuck in this system and lifestyle. Breathing in coal soot all day hard drugs all night.
Most of the time, these subjects were portrayed as disgusting and uneducated, but once in a while they would say something heartbreaking and introspective that made me think. I saw a woman get her baby taken away from her, contemplating suicide, and all I could think was, "That's what she deserves." Punctuated by the music of Jesco, their grandfather with actual talent, this documentary made me realize how judgmental we can be and how one-sided documentaries can be.
I think that Julien's approach was very observant in his exploration of the White family. The ones with the infamous and famous reputation. At first I didn't think it was responsible for him to expose these people so personally. A lot of drug use, bad parenting, and crimes were showing this family in a bad light. They were being made out to look like stereotypical and horrible people. But as the film went on I realized that it was necessary to show these people in their true selves because in the end they are a family that loves each other. They were there for the birth of the child and they were there for the mother when she had her stroke. They also repeatedly told the camera crew that they would and have attempted to kill anyone who wronged their family. Even though they are radical, they still love each other. I think the filmmaker was responsible by not holding back in showing how these people can cope with the dead life style of their town. I thought the filmmaker showed authority by interviewing the public officials and showing the police footage of some of the crimes committed by the family. Like when the son shot his mom's boyfriend in the face. They got the info from the actual people and backed it up with news reports. This directly relates to primary and secondary sources like in our book Crafting Truth. I unfortunately think that the film would interest people who do not like people from the south, or hillbillies. I feel that it was keeping them under a bad light so well, that it would just make all southerners look bad. It would also make people loose a little respect for the south. It made me feel shocked that people down in West Virginia were that dysfunctional. Then again it doesn't speak for all southerners, but for some it might. I think the doc is authentic in that it glorified dysfunctionality in a comical way. I had never seen what I would call a black comedy documentary before. So I think it is very interesting in how they put it together to shock you, make you laugh, and make you feel sorry for the people. I very much enjoyed it, thank you.
ReplyDeleteI think Nitzberg's approach to the material was the best one to take, you have to give an overview of the characters so that people can really know what is going on, and that is what he did by interviewing the judges, lawyers and police. Also I think he is being responsible in the potrayal of the White's because he shows the family and what they do, say and act. But he also uses outside people to describe not only there past, but West Virginias past and how they grew up. Im not sure if he shows authority in the film because he has all the people on the same plane, nobody is really talking down about the Whites, they are just telling the truth and giving reasons. I think the films interest can be everyone, I think anyone could watch this show and have a different take on it. Really religious people would be offended, parties would wanna meet the family, drug addicts could relate as well as alcoholics. Also it might show people that even in a shitty situation, good can still come out of people by Kirk forcing herself into rehab, then taking her son there to get him out of the situation as well. Also showing the brother in Minnesota and how he still drinks and kind of acts the same, but much much tamer just showed the the area of Boone County could really be to blame, and its not just an excuse the Whites use without proof. It does make the Whites look like a good ol' hillbilly family, but it also reaches down deep and shows the viewer how important family is to them. Just because they act differently than most families, doesnt mean that they dont have some of the same values. We might not like how they act, but the film shows how deep the people are and how much love is actually there for everyone in the family and how much they support eachother. I got the sense that they truly believe that without their family, there is nothing in life. I think the film is very authentic because there are moments where you see pauses in the interviews and conversations where the people are really thinking, or reacting to something. And the interviews are in their homes, cars, bedrooms and where they hang out all the time, so its very personal and that gives it another sense of authenticity. Also I really liked how he tied in the judges, lawyers and police interviews to really show what the family was fighting, not only itself, but the years of isolation and this no fear mentality that started with their dad. And having the directors voice in some parts, and leaving it out in others made it feel like a conversation at some points, and a story at others.
ReplyDeleteThe Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia, if you’ve ever been to West Virginia this is not far off the truth. I felt this was an accurate portrayal of the family and not to far off representation of the state itself. When they interview the defense layer the layer try’s to tell the cameramen that they don’t represent West Virginia, in some ways he is right but in other way he is wrong. Having lived pretty close to West Virginia I know that this is not to far off from a representation of the state. Last time I drove through West Virginia I was in the state from 30 minutes and we passed well over fifty shacks that look like a shed that said strip clubs on them. I can’t describe to how dirty a lot of West Virginia is. I think this film was made responsibly I believe that director made a careful decision what and what not to put into the film, while ultimately not sacrificing the story that he was telling. There were some lines as a director may have been blurred like with the many accounts of people doing harmful things to their bodies especially with children around. Do you intervene or just sit by. I think that goes down to the intention of the filmmaker is he just documenting these people or is he trying to help them by releasing this film. I believe his intentions are pretty clear; he is here to observe.
ReplyDeleteI finally got to watch this documentary and I have to say I didn't really care for it. It just seemed like a reality TV show and that is not my thing. But I did like a few aspects about the film and it does entertain. Julien Nitzberg's approach to this film was an in depth and personal projection of the White family. The reason for that is instead of just simply filming their antics he interviews and probes deep into the family issues that I think are not seen by their community. The only thing I liked about that film and that I thought was the only actual story is the woman with the son, who has the baby girl that gets taken away from her. I really felt sympathetic toward her even though I think her entire family is just a waste of space. That is the story I wish was followed. I was so disapointed that the film ended with her getting out of rehab, i could have followed her struggle for the next 5 years of her life! I think the director portrays the Whites in exactly how they see themselves. He did in no way distort their image or take advantage of them. I do think he was really respectable to the family. I do not feel there is too much athority in the film. I feel that it is very free and that the whites are completley in control of what is filmed and what they show. For me it was like a fly on the wall with some in depth exploration of the families relationship with one another.
ReplyDeleteThis Doc was a pretty intense view at the other side of the poor. To see a doc portray a family like this and have them open to having their lifestyle recording is crazy. This Definitely was an exploitive doc but I also feel that it was the right counter balance of exploitive because through the troubles of having drugs and violence we see a somewhat innocent view when one of the whites has a baby and gets it taken away and she submits herself to rehab to get her baby back. I don’t think this doc was an overwhelming amount of graphic images or exploitation because the family welcomed them to be recorded for who they are and although they had testimony of the town’s people it really made a difference from a third party telling who they are and us seeing from the Whites themselves. For Dickhouse to produce a Doc like this wasn’t to surprising since they also do Jackass but the approach to how they were depicted and how the doc unfolds was very impressive. There wasn’t any outside source manipulating the way they were displayed, they were proud of who they were and just showing their lives without so much other testimony was great.
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