Who Took Johnny?

Starring: Noreen Gosch

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

In 1982, missing children reports were so rare, that often times the local authorities didn't take them seriously. Most of these kids were considered runaways, as authorities at the time couldn't even fathom the depths of depravity that some people are capable of sinking to. In the case of Johnny Gosch, not only wasn't he a runaway, the compelling documentary, Who Took Johnny?, and the subsequent books by his mother, Noreen, have shown that not only may Johnny still be alive 35 years later, but he may have suffered more torture than anyone in the history of this planet. On September 5, 1982, Johnny Gosch, a local paperboy was abducted from Des Moines, Iowa. Despite eyewitness statements, the local police, considered him to be a runaway. Over the years evidence and even a witness go to the FBI to say that Johnny was used for human trafficking. Pictures have turned up and even his mother claims, Johnny stopped by the house for a brief time, 15 years after he'd disappeared. The documentary shows how the local authorities, didn't care and mishandled the case right from the very beginning, and how the FBI kept the family completely in the dark. To this day, despite the fact that her son could be god-knows-where, Noreen Gosch has become an outspoken defender for missing children and the rights of their parents. There is no doubt that this documentary is anything but unbiased and impartial, and while I'm not sure I believe everything Mrs. Gosch says, when taken as a whole, one can't ignore everything that happened in this case. The other side of this gave blanket statements or declined to be interviewed, which tells me, she's right about more than a few things, and even if a third of this is true, it's appalling. When catastrophe strikes, we rely on those in power to take care of us and make things right, but what happens if they just don't want to? This documentary is truly eye-opening and provides plenty of ammunition to victims rights advocates. 

The Fear of 13

Starring: Nicholas Yarris

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

I don't generally review Documentaries, but sometimes a documentary comes along that is so compelling, people need to know about it. The Fear of 13 is the biography of a man, that most of us have never heard of, Nicholas Yarris. His was one of the first cases taken on by the Innocence Project and he is a prime example of not only the system failing to help someone, but a reason that it should scare the hell out of you. Yarris wasn't a great guy, when he was pulled over in the wrong place at the wrong time. Given his criminal history and inability to pay for a proper defense, Yarris was the perfect target for an over zealous District Attorney. Despite being based on completely circumstantial evidence, Yarris was convinced of murder and sentenced to death row. His life was troubled on the outside, but what happened in prison made it seem like a walk in the park. For twenty years, Yarris's cries fell on deaf ears, and it wasn't until he gave up and said, just kill me already, that someone finally noticed him. Nicholas Yarris's story is the kind of thing you can't make up and someday, I'd love to see a movie version of it. This man was never considered innocent and he wasn't proven guilty, yet he was forced to endure government sanctioned torture, the likes of which we couldn't possibly imagine. This is an eye opening documentary that must be seen by all and afterwards it may just change your opinion on our criminal justice system.

Shenandoah (2012)

Starring: David Turnley

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Ask yourself a question, what if a loved one was brutally killed, but you were the only one who cared about getting justice for the victim? That was the reality in the small town of Shenandoah, Pennsylvania in 2008, when a migrant worker was killed in a hate crime. Shenandoah is one of those small towns, where everyone knows everyone else, most people even work in the same place, but recently, things had been changing. Migrate workers had been brought in to keep the failing factories open, and the citizens of the flailing town were losing their jobs. One night some drunk teenagers were joking around, but to a recent arrival to this country, who didn't speak the language or know the culture, it looked like something else. As he confronted the teens, they proceeded to assault him, shouting racial slurs in one of the worst assaults the town had ever seen, and when the dust had settled, the worker was dead. After a brief investigation, the police linked the crime to several football players and charged them with minor crimes, but the town wasn't outraged, in fact, as this documentary explores, most of the townspeople actually approve of what the police did! This documentary is utterly shocking, taking us through the crime and investigation, while giving us a look at both sides from the towns reaction to the man's fiancee and the very few outsiders who actually faced threats and harassment, simply for asking that justice be served. Does this kind of thing really still happen in the United States? According to this documentary, the small town racist, gang, mentality is still alive and well, and it's closer than you think. Fighting it isn't as simple as going online and telling people about it either. The documentary was truly shocking, not just because of the ages of the boys involved, but for the sheer fact that these people thought they were justified in what they had done, and by how the react to anyone who tries to tell them differently.

Kids For Cash

Starring: Mark Ciavarella, Michael Conahan, & Robert May

Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

It is one of the most disturbing stories of just how greedy and corrupt people can truly be. In 2000, Luzerne County Pennsylvania needed a new Juvenile detention facility, but couldn't afford it, so they privatized it. Leading the group that won the contract, were two of their own Juvenile court judges. That alone was a grey area, but not the issue. Soon, the judges learned that the more occupants the jail had, the more money the facility would receive from the state. So, despite the law, which requires juvenile offenders to be sentenced to the least restrictive environment possible, kids as young as thirteen, with no previous record, were being sent to JV for very minor offenses. As a result, the facility was receiving millions from the states, which the judges were embezzling. As the scandal unfolded, this documentary was filmed and shockingly, both judges agreed to be a part of it, claiming they were always tough on juvenile crime and had done nothing wrong. Judges never comment on cases and defendants are always advised not to talk to the media, but for some reason these judges did, and the way they justify their actions is truly sickening. There is even one scene where a mother confronts one of the judges outside of court house, holding a picture. She says to him, this is my son, he was fifteen when you put him in jail for drinking some beers and fighting with other teens. He served three years and within six months of being released he killed himself, and that's your fault. The judge could care less, it was truly amazing. The documentary is an eye opener and it follows the scandal through the family and offenders stories, through the investigation, right up through the trial and outcome, it really something to see. The whole thing really makes me wonder, if judges can be swayed that easily, just how corrupt is this country and how many truly innocent people are there sitting in jail or on a list somewhere, all because someone was paid to put them there?

Matt Shepard Is A Friend of Mine

Starring: Matthew Shepard & Michele Josue

Rating: 4 1/2 out of 5 stars

Matthew Shepard represents many things to many different people. For some he stands as a symbol of why people need to fight for equality, for others he opened their eyes to the horror and abuses that people go through every day simply for being different. What's easy to forget however, is that first and foremost, Matthew Shepard was a human being. Shepard was a friendly, kind, outgoing, young man from a small town and there in lied the problem. In a town of a few thousand, Shepard stood out and everyone knew who he was and what he was. One night, a couple of drunk rednecks decided to mess with him, it went too far, and they killed him. This film, isn't about that though, it isn't one of the many films about the symbol that Shepard became or the fight for equal rights his story ignited. This is a film, by a long time friend of Matt's, who simply wanted the world to know about her friend. Michele Josue interviews Matt's brokenhearted family and friends about his life, from childhood up until his untimely death, and weather your gay or not, weather you respect gay rights or not, you can't help but feel for these people who lost such a bright, loving, artistic person, who made everyone around him just that much better for knowing him. It's a terrific documentary and I was very happy that for once, a documentary focused on the life of the man instead of the tragic way that he was killed.

Lost For Life

Starring: Joshua Rofe

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

I watch a lot of documentaries, but rarely if ever, do I review them. The truth is that very few documentaries are objective. They are always an attempt to get the producers own point of view out to the public, and it's very hard to judge someone based on their personal philosophies. In this case I made an exception, because of the controversial nature of the film. My hope is that people will chime in and it will re-energize our failing comment system. 

This film focuses on youth offenders, who were given life sentences for the crimes they committed. The question is, should a persons entire life be determined by one act they committed as a teenager? Several of these people are interviewed and the overwhelming opinion is that most of them don't deserve to remain where they are, despite what they've done. In fact a new law is going to allow for lifers, convicted as teenagers, to have their case re-examined after a specific amount of time, based on the nature of the crime. Given the people interviewed in this film, it's easy to say they deserve a second chance. Who doesn't feel for a kid, who was with a crazy friend at the wrong time, and convicted of felony murder, just for being there? Who doesn't feel that a fifteen year old, who killed his sexual abusive parents, twenty years ago, shouldn't be released? It's easy to feel this way when presented with these types of offenders, but what about the people they didn't interview? The kids who brutally kill, just to see what it feels like or the kid who goes into school and shoots a dozen people because he's been bullied, do they deserve a second chance at freedom? I don't argue with the fact that a persons development isn't fully complete by the time they are a teenagers. I also don't argue that this lack of maturity leads to their stupid decisions. In some rare cases, these cases should be re-examined. However, when someone is so broken, that they kill for fun and without remorse, even at a young age, they are broken, and until we knows for certain how to fix them, they belong behind bars. What does everyone else think?

Inside The American Mob

Starring: Salvatore Polisi

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Mob documentaries are a dime a dozen and are almost always the same. They feature guys who wrote books about the mafia, talking about Al Capone and John Gotti, until now. Inside The American Mob was a long time in the making and for the first time really does give an accurate history and inside look at organized crime. Two things made this mini-series different from the others, the first being, the people they interviewed. National Geographic sits down with actual detectives, informants, agents, and even current members, who live the mob life. They tell stories that haven't been told before and as it turns out a lot of things we've been told before weren't quite right. The second difference is that this documentary focuses on the timeline, going from the beginning of the five families, all the way up to today. Yes, they talk about Gotti and Donnie Brasco, but they also focus intently on the big names that came in between and weren't as infamous. I have an odd fascination with organized crime and I watch mob documentaries and films fairly often, and I usually don't learn too much or meet people I didn't already know about. Inside The American Mob was completely different, as each of the six episodes introduced me to thing I never would have imagined, told to me by the people who were actually there.  National Geographic set out to film the definitive insiders guide to the mob and they succeeded.

Hot Coffee

Starring: Joan Claybrook, Oliver Diaz, & Al Fraken

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Like most documentaries, Hot Coffee uses a sample size of cases in the minority to push it's own agenda. The focus of the film is on tort reform and how it hurts people who have been legitimately injured. Tort laws put caps on the amount of money that an injured party can get, in certain types of lawsuits, for the purpose of stopping what the government considers to be frivolous claims. The documentary focuses on five specific cases and brings up the old discussion on whether or not it's better to let ten guilty men go free, rather than to punish one innocent person. Yes, the people in these stories were legitimately hurt and didn't get a fraction of what they deserved, because of these laws, but they are the exception instead of the rule. The most notable case the documentary focuses on is the case in which an elderly woman sued McDonald's, after she spilled hot coffee on herself. It's a case most people would consider frivolous, until you actually hear the facts. The woman's legal team was able to show that she received third degree burns and almost lost her life, because McDonald's required their coffee to be kept at a ridiculous 190 degrees. The elderly woman won over two million dollars, but had her award capped due to tort laws and the result was barely enough money to cover her medical bills. As I said before, these cases are exceptions to the rule, and by compiling these exceptions, this documentary makes it appear as though innocent American's are being screwed on a daily basis, which isn't true. While some people unfortunately fall through the cracks, the film fails to mention all the fraud and non-sense that has been stopped by these laws, or how these laws have kept insurance costs down. The bottom line, anyone can push any agenda they want, as long as they find a few select examples that can make their case for them, but it doesn't mean that their claims have merit.

Legends Never Die

Starring: Bruno Sammartino & Roddy Piper

Rating: 1 out of 5 stars

This acclaimed documentary was supposed to be about all the untimely deaths in the professional wrestling industry. Since 1980, over 100 wrestlers have died under the age of 45, some from straight drug overdoses, others from age related disease. This is the wrestling documentary I've been waiting for, for a very long time, but it isn't what it's advertised to be. The film is hosted by the legendary Roddy Piper, filmed as he and Bruno Sammartino prepare to do a meet and greet at the Hard Rock Cafe. On the way they get to talking and for almost the entire film, they discuss how people perceive wrestling as fake, when the only thing per-determined is the outcome. The former Superstars go on and on about how the moves are spontaneous and the risks and injuries are 100% real. It gets to be very repetitive after a while. They also spend much of the film bashing their former employer, Vince McMahon, and blame him for wrestling's transformation from a real sport to a soap opera. They have a point there, but honestly, this film was nothing like what was advertised. The untimely death of these wrestlers was only mentioned in the last 10 minutes, and both former stars refused to say straight out that performance enhancing drugs were the reason, after all they weren't in the WWE Hall of Fame yet when this film was made. What also hurts the film is that it wasn't sanctioned or produced by any affiliated wrestling company and therefore had very little footage to show. We saw lots of pictures, but for the most part it was watching these guy having a conversation in their limo. Don't be fooled by the cool cover, the description on the back, or even by the terrific preview I saw on Youtube, before watching this film. It is as boring as any documentary you've been forced to watch in school.

Bully (2011)

Starring: Alex Libby, Kelby Johnson, & Ja'Meya Jackson

Rating: 3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Today kids are killing themselves and each other at an alarming rate. The one thing all these cases seem to have in common is bullying. There was bullying when I was a kid, but 3 PM meant the end of the trouble. We had the rest of the day, the weekend, and the summer to recover. The advent of social media and cell phones has made the respite obsolete, as now, bullies can torture their victims 24/7. Bully is an award winning documentary that looks at the problems of bullying and shows the effects it has on children's lives. What I like about this film is that it showed a whole group of students from different economic, social, and ethnic backgrounds. What I took away is that anyone who is even slightly different in anyway, could be a target. What I didn't like was the solutions the film offers. Their solution is to tell someone and to stand up for kids you see being bullied, but anyone who has been bullied will tell you that those are not good ideas. Often times telling someone will anger the bully and make it worse, and as for standing up for other kids, often times that makes someone who wasn't previous bullied, a target. I think the answer is two-fold, in that first, parents need to tell their kids, from a very earlier age, that being unique, different, and even weird are admirable qualities in a person. I also believe the schools need to be tougher, because honestly, does anyone really think that giving a bully detention, telling them they're not nice, and that their hurting other kids really does anything? I think bullies need a taste of their own medicine, to feel those powerful emotions for even for just one day. You can talk until you're blue in the face, but you don't really know what something is like until you've experienced it for yourself.

TWA: Fight 800

Starring: Tom Stalcup, Hank Hughes, & James Speer

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

I am really not a fan of conspiracy theories and I generally try to avoid documentaries like this one, but The flight 800 crash did happen within a half hour of my home. For six months after the crash the local media was filled with arguments and doubt over what happened. Now, 17 years removed, I decided to watch this film, with the hope of finally learning the truth and I think I did. When a handful of people see something, it's easy to pass them over as a bunch of nuts, but what happens when 1000 people see something? The First Amendment gives people the right to say anything, but when you're going against the U.S. Government, you'd better have the evidence to back it up, the producers of this film have that and then some. In this film, the lead NTSB investigator, on the job for more the 40 years said that the FBI was on the scene in minutes, that they wouldn't let anyone in, and once he was finally allowed to do his job, evidence was removed and he was not allowed to submit his report. Medical examiners, on the job for half a century explained that their investigation was hindered as well, and that the injuries didn't fit the story. The film makers not only had this outrageous testimony, but they had experts who said the Government story was impossible. They prove this with formerly classified documents, radar evidence, and witness testimony. There is no doubt that this plane was brought down by missiles, so why did the Government cover it up? If it was an act of terrorism, there would be no reason to cover it up. Not to mention, if it was an act of terrorism, how did they get three missles and two boats, without anyone noticing? Finally, most compelling of all, when a terrorist group does something, they want everyone to know about it, but no one ever took responsibility for doing this, which leads me to believe it was our own Government. There is a naval base in that area, who would have had the capabilities of doing this, the only question is, did the U.S. Government sacrifice 149 people to kill one person who they didn't want leaving the country? I don't know and neither does anyone else, but the truth is that the families of the victims deserve to know how and why their loved ones were killed. How can anyone expect to have closure when their is such an obviously lie being thrown at them? It really is a shameful display of Government abuse and all I can say is that I hope the real story does come out one day.

Beyond The Mat

Starring: Terry Funk, Mick Foley, Jack Roberts, & The Rock
Rating: 3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Adult professional wrestling fans aren't stupid, we know wrestling is fake and the outcomes are pre-determined. What none fans don't realize is why we like it. It's the drama, the pageantry, the cheesy stories, the costumes, and most of all the action. Yes, it's pre-determined and choreographed, but you still need to be charismatic and athletic, and night after night these guys put their bodies on the line just for our entertainment. People have been killed and paralyzed doing this, so to anyone who says it's not real and takes no skill, I point to this documentary. Beyond The Mat looks into the lives of these guys outside the ring and show the ancient Terry Funk, whose body has been ravaged from years in the ring. He can barely walk anymore, but still has to get in there and has to do this because it's all he knows and what he loves. Jake "The Snake" Roberts is also featured and he talks about how eight years on the road with WWE made him a neglectful father, a bad husband, and a drug addict. Roberts says between the pain and the constant moving around he could never have done it without drugs! Finally, they look at Mick Foley AKA Mankind, Dude Love, Cactus Jack and show how he's this normal family man and while his family knows it's for show, how much they worry. In the last 30 years, hundreds of pro-wrestlers have died under the age of 45, most of them due to the physical trauma they've put their bodies through or the dependence on drugs that has resulted from it. If those were NFL or MLB stars instead, there would be massive reform and congressional intervention, but the truth is no one cares about these guys, except of course their families, friends, and fans. Beyond The Mat is important because it shows just what these guys put on the line and just how little the people at the top care.

Waiting For "Superman"

Starring: Davis Guggenheim
Rating: 2 1/2 out of 5 stars

Waiting For "Superman" is an inside look at the problems with education in America. The film is extremely eye-opening, showing just how bad a state most of our education systems are in. They clearly illustrate that no matter the area, teachers are failing America's youth at an alarming rate. I found the film to be very biased though, as it only points out what's wrong with the system, and fails to mention any of the positives that still exist in education. It also fails to offer solutions for the problems. Guggenheim throws lots of facts and figures at us and repeats the same themes. It gets to a point where he's just beating us over the head with the same concepts. Many people saw this as an inspirational call to action, but me, I saw it as a guy complaining. Honestly, if you can't offer up a solution than why present the problem? I'm pretty sure that almost everyone in America knows how bad education has gotten, even if they don't have the exact figures in front of them.

The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made

Starring: Carlos Larkin
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

We all know there are some really terrible movies, that should have never been made. This documentary attempts to highlight these films and tell you just what was so bad about them. I liked how they told you unknown information about these movies, that made them seem even more ridiculous. What I didn't like was how narrow minded the documentary is. Released in 2004, it mainly focus on Science Fiction and Horror films, made between 1940 and 1980. While ignoring all other genres, as well as the last 30 yrs of film, the documentary also rushes through, ending in just over an hour. Seeing all those old films and learning about how crazy some of the things they did was really interested, but it was simply rushed and narrow minded. Maybe in the future someone will expand the search criteria and give a more accurate picture of what truly bad is.

3000 Miles

Staring: Bam Margera, Ryan Dunn, & Tony Hawk
Rating: 1 out of 5 stars

I love Bam and I'm a big fan of Jackass. I usually love how simplistically genius these guys are when it comes to comedy, and I was expecting to see the same juvenile chaos in the world's most famous race, boy was I wrong! This is just a very dull view of the race, it's history, and the cars in it. It was poorly directed, probably shot by one of their drunken friends, and boring as hell! AVOID!

Fahrenheit 9/11

Staring: Michael Moore
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

It's clear that Michael Moore often has his own agenda, but I'm sure if he could prove any of the things he says in this film, alot of people would be in prison. Some things are VERY interesting and really makes you think, while other stuff is complete bull shit meant to serve his personal agenda, never the less, it was entertaining and it does gives you something to think about.

Ghost Adventures

Staring: Zak Bagans
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

I love the show Ghost Adventures every Friday night on the Travel Channel, but this isn't the show. This is the documentary that started it all, and it's definatly not as good as the tv show. They picked up a lot of compelling evidence and the end will just blow your mind. Even if you're not a fan or don't believe in this sorta thing, I'd give it shot and see what you think of it.