Not your typical Jewish family

JORDANA ROTHSTEIN SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH BULLETIN

The film Capturing the Friedmans, directed by Andrew Jarecki, begins with images of an upper-middle-class Jewish family. Elaine Freidman, together with her three sons, David, Seth and Jesse, live in the affluent Long Island, N.Y., suburb of Great Neck. Her husband, Arnie, who has passed away, is being remembered fondly by his eldest son, David, as an excellent teacher, a devoted husband and a loving father. David laughs as he remembers his father's stint in a mambo band after Arnie's college graduation, at which time he changed his name to Arnito Rey, to better fit in the Latin music scene of the Catskills.

This amusing bit of information regarding the senior Friedman's life is one of the few moments in the film that is not charged with intense emotion. Through personal interviews with his family members, it is quickly revealed that Arnie Friedman had a serious problem – he was a pedophile. After police uncovered his collection of child pornography and charged him with hundreds of counts of child molestation (which he denied), he admitted to sexually molesting other young boys, among them his eight-year-old brother, when he was 13 years old.

While the film's purpose seems to be an attempt to show Friedman's guilt or innocence, this is not the most interesting part of the story. On that front, no conclusion is ever reached – people argue back and forth over whether or not Friedman could possibly have committed the crimes of which he is accused, with neither side hearing the arguments of their opponents. With Friedman having plead guilty to the charges, served time in jail and died while incarcerated, the debate seems tired and pointless.

More interesting is the picture we get of the effect Freidman's alleged crimes have had on his family: David, denying all claims against his father and staunchly supporting him, has become a top-rated clown at kids' parties in Manhattan. One can only wonder what goes through his mind as he works with children day after day.

Seth, whose voice is only heard through old audio recordings, refused to be interviewed for this film. Has he finally decided that his father was not the infallible being he once believed him to be?

Jesse, accused alongside his father, served 13 years in prison for his alleged crimes after pleading guilty. Is he as innocent as he claims to be?

And finally, his ex-wife Elaine (she divorced him while he was in prison) is now remarried. Can she ever forget the pain she experienced after being hurtled into the public eye by her husband's alleged crimes, and then rejected by her sons, who accused her of not being supportive enough of their father?

These human dramas are the lifeline director Jarecki throws to his audience. As we hear their stories, the hope that they will eventually regain their previous happiness carries us through heart-wrenching moments, such as the toast made by David at the Passover seder: "Here's to Dad being here next year," instead of the usual "L'shana habah b'Yerushalayim" ("Next year in Jerusalem"). This is just one instance in which Jarecki seems to offer up the family's Judaism as evidence of their humanity, and compensation for the terrible crimes some are accused of committing, and others are defending. After the first revelation of Friedman's interest in young children, a family photograph is shown, in which Elaine is seen sporting a shirt with "Jerusalem" emblazoned across the front in Hebrew letters. As we see Elaine and Arnie Friedman in a rare, post-accusation, embrace, we hear her say, "All you give me is tsures (trouble)." Most shockingly, after Jesse says that his father molested him as well (a charge he later denies), a photo of him and his father is flashed on screen, showing them hugging in front of their menorah on Chanukah.

Much of the film is quite painful to watch – seeing a family self-destruct is hardly enjoyable viewing. But, after watching the documentary, the audience is no better equipped to make a decision regarding Friedman's guilt or innocence. They are, however, aware that Friedman was a man, not a monster; he had a family, a life and a religion that he acknowledged and embraced. He cannot be dismissed as a lunatic, someone whose actions can be explained by their inhumanity. In that revelation lies the power, and the horror, of this magnificently constructed documentary.

Capturing the Friedmans, winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival, opens Aug. 8 in Vancouver.

Jordana Rothstein is an English major at Princeton University who enjoys coming home for the summer.

^TOP