Moreover, one can say that the subjects were exploited not only in the aforementioned scenes, but generally throughout the film. He says My job is to explain, not entertain. Overall, I believe that it is good to make the public known about situations like these, especially when it can have an impact on your image of alcohol. June 27, 2015 by webadmin Watch on YouTube Watch on Brilliant, unflinching documentary on alcoholism by Kent film maker Paul Watson. There are so many implicit positives such as the awareness it gives people of the truth about alcoholism, its broadcasting the problems in society like a fresh scar, so audiences cant ignore or forget what they have learnt. It is true that there are not many cut ins of his own questioning however Watson thought it be inappropriate to constantly show his own personal struggles when his subjects are undergoing way more traumatic psychological illnesses. However, I would not say these intimacies are exploitative of the sincere as they are constantly asked for permission as to what Watson is filming is ok by them. If she was lying she wouldnt tell him would she? Obliging by the rules of observational filmmaking, Watson, on the whole, assumes a fly-on-the-wall position and captures the destruction as it unfolds. On the other hand, he showed the subjects at their worst, but almost continuously. So yes, as we saw during the screening, he was primarily affected by alcohols effect on his father and then consequently, his entire family. As an audience member I am conflicted as to how satisfied I am with how Watson deals with accusations about him exploiting the audience. Rain In My Heart by Edgar Lee Masters There is a quiet in my heart Like on who rests from days of pain. Another point in this film is when Paul Watson films a drunk subject who discusses the, monsters in her head, which she previously was not ready to do. He pressed forward with the interview and filmming in the crual moment such as his subject vomitted and had a hard time with pain. Director Paul Watson See production, box office & company info Add to Watchlist 5 User reviews Won 1 BAFTA Award 2 wins & 1 nomination total Photos Add photo More like this 6.7 Whilst considering the methods that Watson used to gain the footage and despite my previous comments being slightly negative, i do believe he was being somewhat ethical. Overall were the subjects happy to be on film? This was mostly due to the fact that obviously he was filming people with huge vulnerability in their lives, therefore he was careful not to portray the situation as taking advantage of. At this point, i would say, at least, it demonstrates the serious damage of alcoholism to many people like me, especially for teengers. So all these people dont mind being shown in their most vulnerable state on national TV and even Watson at times ask the subjects if they would like him to turn the camera off. It shows the situation without making of adjustments. He witnessed some horrific scenes throughout filming and only once (that I can recall) did he step in to hand Mark a sick bucket and express disappointment to Venda for her choosing to buy a bottle of vodka. I think the fact that this documentary is so hard to watch gives light to the reality that alcoholism is incredibly hard to live with, and by being so thorough the film shortens the gap between subject and audience. This can be seen when Watson is speaking to Toni about her addiction, something that Toni profusely denies she is. When telling Vandas story, I felt he was very close to her, almost to the point where it could be seen as a personal relationship. I wanted to look away and the only reason I didnt was because I felt (as i think Watson does) an obligation to make a point of the four subjects publicized suffering. Throughout the film, i found it almost challenging to watch as it touched on so many personal issues to Watsons subjects. But Ive never felt like Watson exploited his subjects. There are certainly points in this film in which I believe that the subjects were exploited. Twenty-nine when he appeared in. Now, with Rain in my Heart, Watson has made the documentary equivalent to The Lost Weekend(1945), the classic feature film about alcoholism, where a writer loses everything through drinking and ends up on a psychiatric ward. Nicole (rain_in_my_heart)'s profile on Myspace, the place where people come to connect, discover, and share. He puts himself in the film to explain how he felt at the time, allowing the audience to be involved in his own personal emotions whilst watching his film. When he interviews his subjects when they are drunk, the woman speaks of her monster inside, she used to suffer from sexual abusing by her father. Check out our rain in my heart selection for the very best in unique or custom, handmade pieces from our shops. Overall, I believe Watson does not exploit his subjects because they knew roughly what they were getting themselves into and because Watson simply observed with the camera the tragic events of the subjects that would gain the empathy of the audience towards the effect of alcoholism. This specific example also leads me to point out how, by digging deep into these miserable cases, the audience would get a clear idea of WHO alcoholics really are and HOW they got involved with alcoholism. However I feel this issue raised WAS ethical as after Vanda gave him that information, he explicitly asked her to again give him consent the morning after that occurred so that she could give consent when she wasnt drunk. He just tried to observe that and filmed everything as it is, while they I assume from the very beginning had agreed to be filmed in any state they are. In all of these I recognise issues which could be perceived as exploitative. Due to the nature of the subject, I believe there were always going to be complex ethical issues in terms of filming. (2006). Dee3 Posts: 10. Louis Theroux reveals his favourite documentaries, all available on BBC iPlayer. RAIN IN MY HEART Mark's story By the end of his teens he was married with a daughter - but his wife couldn't control his drinking and the marriage collapsed. That is a very emotional documentary that began in the hospital with 4 characters and ended in each of their homes- some of them were drunk, the rest are dead. Ive found this good review of the film on the internet: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1661761/. The documentary was quite raw as Watson did show his subjects when they were at their most vulnerable, when they had no real control of what they were doing. The documentary follows four alcoholics in an observatory manner. I do not believe that Paul Watson was dealing with the accusations successfully, but I also do not believe that he was making this film completely selfishly. Watsons past experience in using the observational documentary style in his films means that he is well adjusted to the style. And the audience is living the pain through the subjects, and that is the best outcome to achieve, making the subjects exploitation almost worthwhile. Or when Nigel downs a glass of red wine. Shop unique custom made Canvas. However, many critics point out how these subjects are all vulnerable and incapable of really understanding what they are signing themselves up for. "; How the world's oldest clove tree defied an empire, Why Royal Ballet principal Sergei Polunin quit, Tourists flock to 'Jesus's tomb' in Kashmir. I would not have the heavens fair, The fact he became emotionally involved with such a topic I believe would have helped; it was clear he so wanted them to stay off the alcohol and endure a full recovery. The world was slowly healing. It is hard to watch, but becomes even more uncomfortable when Watson interjects right in the middle of someone elses story, such as Mark, to remind the audience of the monsters. Watson chooses subjects based on their deadly addictions to alcohol, an integral part to the film. It was graphic, saddening and an uncomfortable viewing but I was overwhelmed by its message. In addition, how is one to really define what constitutes as being exploitative? So I didnt think that he has exploited his subject at all as this is what we as viewers needed to see. Ive never seen alcoholism go to this extent. I remember feeling genuinely scared that some of the subjects were going to die: such as when Mark was at home and was continuing to drink in excess and constantly vomiting. (LogOut/ As a viewer, it was uncomfortable to watch Watson try and stay professional. In one scene we hear Watson as whether or not the information he is receiving from one of the subjects would be appropriate to include in the finished product. For Watson asks: What would you class as an alcoholic? Toni replies: Someone who cant go a day without a drink. Once this is said, Watson slowly zooms in on her face and responds: but you told me there are days where you cant go a day without a drink. Watsons response to Tonis statement could be stated as being overly dramatic for the audiences benefit, therefore, compiling with Ellis and most documentary critics argument that the director is always more concerned with how the potential audience will perceive the subject and story than the subject themselves. He is exploiting Nigel as he was only continuing to cover the story because he thinks that he will benefit out of it, when the focus should really be concentrating on capturing the truth and reality of the situation, therefore I believe that Paul Watson was exploiting his subjects in this documentary. He is a quite good interviewer, especially in the interaction between him and the characters. She was also married to him. We as a audience get to see his family grieving him when he dies and more importantly we see his wife looking after him when he is in his worst state and also coping with his departure. All Watsons subjects agreed to being filmed whilst they were drunk before the filming commenced, and so the question is not should Watson have kept filming?, but rather should Watson have included that part of the footage?. The editing in this documentary played a huge part in how the audience saw and formed views about the subjects that Paul Watson was filming. This film must encounter with some ethics problems and Pauls observational style should instigated arguments. That he doesnt so anything to stop them drinking is a part of their own agency, and I believe shows more respect than if he had intervened. This sort of fly-on-the-wall documentaries and even reality tv shows have created are becoming more accepting of intruding on other peoples most intimate and private moments. Numerous parts of the documentary further emphasise this intimacy as we the viewers are taken into the houses of these subjects, as if given permission to enter into anothers personal space which itself is also intimate in the context of the style of filmmaking here (observational). A good example of his moral doubts is when he asks himself Am I an ambulance chaser? and is a clear way of showing how documentary makers may react with barely contained glee when they get material of extreme situation that can make good TV He would ask the interviewees why theyve relapsed or if they feel disappointed with their failed progress, but depending on the reaction to these questions, Watson would take a step back if he sensed it was in anyway emotionally challenging, until the subject would take control and continue/stop themselves. This was maybe to excuse himself for what he maybe shouldnt have been doing and to tell the viewer that yes he thought it was wrong, but he was doing it for a reason to explore a topic that most people are scared of exploring. This is followed by a sequence of Claire crying at his funeral and shots of the casket. Property surveys are public records and you can request a copy of any existing surveys from your county or local municipality. Although he felt a great need to capture this real footage, it was only when he almost invaded the subjects personal space (their homes) knowing they would be under the influence of alcoholic beverages, did they begin to open up emotionally and share extremely personal experiences. Revisiting Rain. One ethical issue that could be introduced at this point is how certain filmmakers victimise their subjects. The subjects are very vulnerable and Watson knew this, therefore ethical issues due to the interference of reality from Watson. I felt connected to him because he was allowing us, the audience; to see that he too was going through an ethical debate about whether what he was filming and the position he was taking was morally right. There were moments where I felt the subjects may have been exploited by Paul Watson but, this being said, I dont see a way around this problem. In order to inform and have an impact on the audience, enough to make them think before undergoing any dangerous activity illustrated in the documentary, the use of empathy is crucial. Secondly, Watson must have gone through a pre-planning stage where he would have had to choose the subjects he wished to include, therefore it couldnt have been as completely objective/unbiased as it seemed. Two of the participants in Paul Watson's Rain in My Heart died during filming. Seeing the filmmakers process on screen is great when theyre doing something that you need to see. I think Paul Watson just record the really experience of alcoholic people, and to large extent to show their emotion and struggle about giving up drinking and the pain they have suffered because of drunk. The film charts the traumas faced by the alcoholics as they bounce between Gillingham Medway Maritime Hospital and their homes, and highlights the emotional impact their struggle has had on those around them. 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