As "The Wolfpack" (2015 reelase; 90 min.) opens, we are in the "Lower East Side, NYC" and we get to know the Angulo siblings, 6 brothers and 1 sister. Apparently they are homeschooled and only rarely ("some years just once or twice") are allowed to leave the apartment by their father. The kids watch tons of movies, and then re-enact some of them (like "Reservoir Dogs"). The mom is also there. She doesn't look very happy... At this point we are less than 10 minutes into the documentary.
Couple of comments: this is the feature length debut from Chrystal Moselle. She lets us catch a glimpse of a very dysfunctional family living in a low-income housing project. Why did the mom and dad decide to do this? And how much longer can they keep this going on? This documentary is quite dark in tone and undertone. I couldn't help but wonder on what money the family survives (as the dad refused to work for reasons I won't spoil--just watch!). On top of that I also wondered about the mental health of the entire family, but mostly the siblings, as what we are seeing cannot be good. Does this amount to emotional abuse?
This documentary made quite the splash when it first came out in 2015. I remember reading a review of it, and thinking to myself "I really need to see this" but for whatever reason I never got the chance to see it (I guess it didn't make it to my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati), and eventually forgot all about it. That is, until the other night when I was browsing the documentaries section on Amazon Prime, and there it was! I knew right away I needed to watch it. Better late than never. IF you are in the mood for a documentary about a dysfunctional family. I'd readily suggest you check this out, and draw your own conclusion.
Couple of comments: this is the feature length debut from Chrystal Moselle. She lets us catch a glimpse of a very dysfunctional family living in a low-income housing project. Why did the mom and dad decide to do this? And how much longer can they keep this going on? This documentary is quite dark in tone and undertone. I couldn't help but wonder on what money the family survives (as the dad refused to work for reasons I won't spoil--just watch!). On top of that I also wondered about the mental health of the entire family, but mostly the siblings, as what we are seeing cannot be good. Does this amount to emotional abuse?
This documentary made quite the splash when it first came out in 2015. I remember reading a review of it, and thinking to myself "I really need to see this" but for whatever reason I never got the chance to see it (I guess it didn't make it to my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati), and eventually forgot all about it. That is, until the other night when I was browsing the documentaries section on Amazon Prime, and there it was! I knew right away I needed to watch it. Better late than never. IF you are in the mood for a documentary about a dysfunctional family. I'd readily suggest you check this out, and draw your own conclusion.