Capturing The Friedmans

Capturing The Friedmans

Documentary Paper 2

“One unerring mark of the love of truth is not entertaining any proposition with greater assurance that the proofs it is built upon will warrant (Solomon 145).”   One the surface, the documentary, by Andrew Jarecki, "Capturing the Friedman’s," takes a startling look into a child molestation case, but at its core it is a search for the truth.   While the film deals with child abuse, or at least the allegations of it, the director never takes a position on the matter, by doing so it allows the viewer to make up their own mind.   Presenting both sides of the case, the director, interviews a number of Friedman’s accusers and examines footage from the Friedman family’s home videos.   David Friedman, the eldest son, eerily documented every aspect of his family’s life, even as the family unit began to collapse under the sexual abuse claims (Jarecki).   Initially, I just assumed both Friedman men were guilty, but throughout the film the absolute truth was clouded with doubt.
  The film begins with what would appear to be a seemingly normal middle-class family from Long Island, New Jersey.   Early in the movie, Arnold Friedman (the father) was caught with child-pornography. While being questioned, Arnold admits to having sexually abused a young boy years earlier.   This confession leads authorities to investigate Friedman more thoroughly. After posting bail, Arnold tells his wife it was a misunderstanding, she blindly believes her husband.   Arnold Friedman ran a computer class out of his home with the help of his eldest son, Jesse, worked in close proximity with children. The police investigation later evolved into a media circus on a state-wide scale, led to allegations of molestation from dozens of former students.   Arnold and Jesse were subsequently arrested for sexually abusing students from their computer business.   Arnold decision to plead guilty in court (although he maintained his innocence in this case) was to distance himself from...