Last Week Tonight With John Oliver: Prisoner Re-Entry

Who doesn't love John Oliver? He's intelligent, passionate, witty and what can I say, I am a huge sucker for his adorable British accent. I am always looking forward to Monday morning because that's when I log into my Youtube account and get the latest dose of Last Week Tonight.

This week's segment was on Prisoner Re-Entry.  Obviously, a controversial topic but this was a really eye-opening video that deserves more attention.

Take 18 minutes out of your day, and watch the video:

My thoughts:

Things certainly need to change, especially in the USA. Many people deserve a chance at a better life once they have served their sentence. Don't just lump every offender together, toss them all behind bars and throw away the key.

The interview that Bilal Chatman did with John was brave. Bilal is a member of society, paying taxes, working hard, heck, he's even passionate about growing tomatoes! Trying to get others to see him as more than just an ex-con will be challenging, but hopefully his employer will continue to judge him on his actions today and not solely on his past.

Now, I believe that we should not turn a blind eye to those who are dangerous and/or repeat offenders, but let's not ostracize every single person when there is hope for rehabilitation.

A great piece today that reflects on how we as a society have the ability to think differently, advocate for change and provide others with the tools and support for a brand new life outside cell walls.

Hot Docs 2014: Web Junkie

*For this particular film, since we both watched it., we did a his (Robert Stephen)/her (me, Melissa Arditti) movie review!  Hope you enjoy it!


Melissa's review

Life can sometimes be overwhelming and we need to escape for a while and indulge in something pleasurable. But when it gets to a point where the virtual world that you've escaped to blurs with actual reality, there is a problem. When you cannot remember the last time you washed your hair, let alone slept in your bed, World of Warcraft probably comes to mind; one of the most highly addictive online fantasy role-playing games.

In Web Junkie, directed by Hilla Medalia and Shosh Shlam, internet addiction is a growing problem in China, especially within the teenage population. To combat this issue, there have been over 400 treatment centres built with the hope to rehabilitate these adolescents before they lose all connection to the real world.

Like many who have addictions, denial is at the forefront, so parents will go to extremes to get their teen help. Some of the methods seem pretty morally disturbing.

These centres are anything but a walk in the park, with intense military-style physical training, group psychological counselling, and pretty much being under a watchful eye at all times. Parents relinquish their parental rights, which is relieving yet heart breaking for them, and in this film we follow three internet addictive teens during their three-month period of stay at a facility.

Compared to an addictive drug, this particular “electronic heroin,” off which they are trying to be weaned, is just as deadly, especially with its psychological dependency. Although people must be responsible for their own behaviours and actions, the abuse, neglect, and the overall feeling of never being good enough are huge factors as to why cyberspace is far more pleasant.

It’s interesting to note not only the openness (or perhaps desperation) of some of the parents, as well as the confrontations that take place during the therapy sessions. In the Asian culture it is often frowned upon to “show face”. It relates to the idea of avoiding the expression of any kind of emotion.

Watching a father break down into tears over his son’s behaviour and his perceived failure as a father figure was quite powerful.

One thing that I take away from this film is that sometimes disconnecting from the virtual world makes you truly appreciate, and reconnects with, what you have right in front of you.

Robert’s review

There is a seductive element to Web Junkie: poor teens trapped by an evil addiction to the internet being more or less drugged and kidnapped by parents and sent to this particular Beijing internet addiction rehab centre.

Let’s step back a moment and put an historical context to this. China controls internet content that flows to its citizens. The Gang of Four and the Cultural Revolution are long gone and have been replaced by a pro-capitalist, anti-democratic Communist Party which controls internet access and filters out any China -negative content.

It reminds one of the Ontario Censor Board in the 1950’s. So, the internet is a suspicious activity in China. A few teenagers go over the edge and 400 internet addiction rehab centres are established. Is the internet in China sweeping the nation in some Reefer Madness fashion? Is there a distorted overreaction? Is there real addiction here or are the teens political dissidents imprisoned for bypassing state sanctioned limits on the internet?

Is the problem World of Warcraft or are those who threaten the rules and sent to re-education camps?

Is this another Cultural Revolution the authorities are bound to lose?
Interesting here is that the internet addiction rehab centre, Chinese Teenagers Mental Correction Centre, filmed in this documentary is administered by the Beijing Military Hospital, and the chief psychiatrist is a military doctor.

My reaction to the documentary was to trash it, and trash it I will, but with a bit of restraint as I know an internet junkie and I recall vividly watching a Polish Film, “Suicide Room.”

A bit of reality and fiction keep me narrowly from saying directors Medalia/Shlam were set-up on this film.

(Web Junkie, Israel/United Kingdom, Mandarin with English Subtitles, opens 30 May 2014, Bloor Hot Docs Cinema, Toronto)

Cutting Loose Movie Review: Dyeing To Change

What’s it like to have freedom? Most of us probably don’t even realize how precious it is to be able to wake up maybe a few minutes past our alarm clock in the morning, or to have the luxury of opening the fridge to see what we’re in the mood to eat, at that very moment. We can even make choices of where we want to go and who we want to see, but never really think twice about it.

For prisoners who are faced with many years ahead of them behind bars, or even life sentences, pleasures like this come far and few in between. Life drastically changes, and routine becomes necessary for survival.

In the BBC2 Scottish documentary Cutting Loose, directed by Finlay Pretsell and Adrian McDowall, there is another side to prison that one can actually say is rather uplifting. Showing a new perspective of rehabilitation, in some areas of Scotland, inmates do not have a mundane existence, they come into prison and find a purpose, and that involves cutting the hair of other inmates.

So here we have third time hairdressing champ Francis Duffy who is 33 years old. He’s a struggling heroin addict who has been in and out of jail since 13 years old. However, as much of a danger he is to society and himself, he is allowed to hold onto a pair of sharp scissors that in the right moment could be used to kill someone. He never does though, nor do any of the other inmates who are given razors, scissors and tools.

Excitement fills the air for the upcoming Scottish Prison Service Hairdressing Competition, which involves both male and female inmates showing off their hair-styling skills. For Francis, this would be his fourth win, but also his last competition before he gets out of jail.

As the film plays on, the audience follows a verbal diary of intense emotional feelings of inmates with a main focus of Francis’ life.

On one hand, it’s difficult to feel compassion for a criminal, especially when it involves something like murder of a loved one. We seek out justice and hope that these individuals are severely punished, in even the cruelest ways. Prison is not a walk in the park and for most that you would speak with, they have regrets.

On the contrary, some see their sentence as a way to gain wisdom and to help others heal from trauma and pain. Others even feel it is their way out of struggling through every day life. They are taken care of and given structure in a world of chaos. As Francis openly said that once he is out, he doesn’t even know how to do the simple things in life, like even pay bills. It was heart-breaking to watch because you could sense his sincerity and as much as you want him locked away, a part of you wants to see him thrive, just like the rest of the inmates.

Hair cutting, dyeing, highlighting, shaving and all the other aspects that go along with being a hairdresser somehow give an outlet for these prisoners, who really feel like they have nothing to live for, and do demonstrably terrible things to others because they are lashing out at the world, as well as themselves.

This documentary shows another side, dare I say, a human side, to those who we loathe most. They are still shackled when they are going from their prison cell to the hairdressing chair, yet everyone seems content and respectful of one another. Perhaps there is fear of what others are capable of doing but there is also some truth that being with the same people, day in and day out, you do gain respect for each other.

Overall, I thought the film was extremely thought-provoking, even though it was only half an hour long. The fate of some of the inmates seems promising, but for others, the safety blanket that this prison system holds is too scary to ever cut loose.