Truth Be Told

As a former Witness, I was curious about the film and found many points I could absolutely, and sometimes tearfully, relate to. The vernacular and experiences of those profiled rang true for the most part, and I can say nothing against the sincere anguish and pain conveyed in their stories and reflected in their eyes as they tell their stories.

While I would say that this is a must-see for anyone who was at any time associated with the Organization, and especially for those who may have found themselves disfellowshipped - as well as for those who have been raised in non-mainstream religions, I did have some issues with it which keep me from giving it a more favorable review.

I appreciated that they did not portray the Organization as some horrible evil and ill-intentioned monolith. That said, there were several non-sensical statements made that distracted me.

* Statements about parents explaining why a particular holiday was "bad", and yet that same interviewee stating that nothing was ever explained. Statements about only Jehovah being worshiped, but never having him and his person/power/purpose explained - that is simply not at all true. Jehovah is personified extensively - almost relentlessly.

* I did not care for the constant depiction of the two bored little girls, because you can see that in any religious service at any time - so that just seemed a self-serving gimmick to me.

* I did not care for the assertion that the materials were being sold. Suggesting a donation, and usually leaving the materials without a donation of any kind, is not considered "selling" by any stretch of the imagination.

* And I also did not like the implication that parents do not have a right to instill their beliefs in their children. Witness upbringing is indeed rigid, but baptism is not forced upon them, and freedom of choice (yes, with consequences) is never off the table once adulthood is reached.

I would have preferred a little more about the psychological effects of feeling like questions were not allowed, that dissent from some beliefs was tantamount to apostasy, the difficulties of finding a suitable mate, and more about the state of mind that still believing some of the doctrine, but not having anything else close to it to turn to, leaves you in. It is an incredible and particular kind of loneliness to be disfellowshipped from a religion you still mostly believe in, and have no alternatives to worship Jehovah in a way that doesn't mimic other religions that you can't quite submit yourself to.

So, in other words, I felt at the end of the day, that most of the stories were about being disgruntled about embarrassment and celebratory deprivation as children, and the pain and confusion associated with disfellowshipping. Worthy of discussion, but not as representative as it could have been. For those of us who did not compensate by finding "God" within, or hyper-celebrating every holiday we felt deprived of, or harboring major resentment for something we never really believed in - the movie just did not leave me with any closure or feelings of closeness with fellow ex-JWs.

I feel it was a disservice to not incorporate an angle about ex-JWs who still believe in much of it but wish the Organization would address and fix their glaring issues, find ways to modernize and balance their approach to childhood, teens, dating, marriage, secular work and education, etc., and rethink their disfellowshipping practice. An exposé without that angle just felt incomplete to me.

This film is mostly composed of in-depth interviews with a handful of people who grew up in the Jehovah's Witness religion; my personal background and experience matches theirs. It beautifully captures the alienating and isolating experience of growing up in the church-- starting with relatively harmless quirks such as not celebrating birthdays, and building up to the brutal practice of shunning.

There are only a few interviewees, but they represent substantial diversity of experience and perspectives. The movie never presents the faith as monolithic; and it focuses on the everyday life of most members, not on a few headline-grabbing scandals.

The one weak spot is the visual montages. In an attempt to capture the church's authoritarian and fear-mongering propaganda, there are lots of quick-flash (almost subliminal) shots of some of their more bizarre religious artwork, and pans and zooms over other ominous imagery. It comes across as cheesy and heavy-handed, and detracts from the candor and subtlety of the interviews.

On the other hand, the running image of the two girls bored in church is all too true to life (and probably churches everywhere); and the visual of street preachers--who gradually replace their pamphlets with signs describing their true feelings--is very well-executed, and helps tie the narrative together.

Overall, Truth Be Told is well-paced, insightful, and down-to-earth. I'd highly recommend it to anyone interested in non-mainstream religions, or who would like to better understand friends or family who've been Jehovah's Witnesses.