Film & TV Reviews

There is a recent trend to portray people with Asperger's Syndrome in films, with Hollywood treating the syndrome as a kind of eccentric character quirk, rather than a sometimes debilitating condition that can place enormous stress on other family members, especially the parents. The first memorable film was probably Rain Man in 1989, with Dustin Hoffman playing the part of an autistic savant: a sweet and gentle man with an awkward gait and stilted language and a talent for numbers. Funnily enough, the inspiration for Raymond Babbitt, Dustin Hoffman's character, is a chap called Kim Peek [read AvdP's article on Kim Peek, who died in 2009, here], who is not autistic at all, but is more likely to suffer from FG Syndrome. Despite the Hollywood depiction of autism however, the film did bring autism into the public's awareness.

And since then there have been plenty more, including Snow Cake a lovely film with Sigourney Weaver and Alan Rickman (my husband would hate me for not mentioning that Carrie-Anne Moss is in it as well); Mozart and the Whale (the screenwriter of which co-wrote Rain Man) and the most recent addition - Adam (see trailer here).

We will be reviewing these and more, including TV programmes, below.

By the way, again, we do not gain financially from these reviews - in fact there is no financial gain from anything we do! - except if you click on the Amazon and Google links on our site, and any money earnt in this way will be used to finance this website.

• Mary and Max

• 'Mary and Max' is a 2009 Australian clay-animated feature film directed and written by Adam Elliot and produced by Melanie Coombs. The film is beautifully narrated by Barry Humphries. He has a soothing, Stephen Fry sort of feel, as though telling a story to a child but for adults.
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• Temple Grandin

• Temple Grandin is best known for her contribution to autism awareness and also for bringing ethics into the livestock industry.
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• An Animated Introduction to Asperger syndrome
  Biomation - 2010

• **Winner - International Animation Award, Edinburgh Mental Health & Arts Festival 2008**
  
  Created by pioneering science and youth arts project Biomation, An Animated Introduction to Asperger Syndrome is an accessible film that explains through a series of lively animations what Asperger Syndrome is, what it feels like and how it can be helped, in a way that is both informative and easy to understand.
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• Wonderland - Series 2 - I won University Challenge
  BBC3 - August 09

• How has life played out for those endowed with the nation's biggest brains, the previous winners of quiz show University Challenge? After university, is it easy to put those brains to good use?
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• The Autistic Me
  BBC3 - August 09

• A lovely programme that gave us a brief glimpse into the lives of three boys/young men with Asperger's Syndrome and their families.
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• The Boy Inside - a journey into autism
  by Marianne Kaplan

• This is an acutely painful, beautiful film. It is about Aspergers and the effect it has on the whole family as seen through the lens of the mother, a film maker. It explores the pain of Adam growing up and never quite fitting in and the constant pangs of parenting such children. But it is about so much more, it is filled with love, courage, persistence and wonderful people.
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• Clay Marzo: Just Add Water
  Quiksilver

• Have you ever loved something to the point that it becomes what you live for? Meet Clay Marzo whose passion for surfing is so pure it defies description. Take a visually stunning and emotionally powerful journey through his life. See Clay literally come alive in the ocean as he destroys the waves of Tahiti, Fiji, Hawaii, France, Spain and Australia with his wildly creative surfing. You'll also experience inspiring testimonials about his incredible talent from the most legendary surfers in the world. The story also showcases an awareness-raising glimpse into his life and mind as he comes to understand both the gifts and challenges of living with Asperger's. This is a surf film unlike anything you've ever seen.
  
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• Autistic-Like, Graham's Story
  Erik Linthorst

• is a documentary about a small and enchanting little boy who has many autistic features but does not quite fit the criteria for autism. The DVD follows the life of Graham and his dedicated and loving parents Jennie and Erik. The opening remark 'you get this diagnosis....and you're just looking for somebody you can trust...somebody who has the answers and it is really scary because, guess what nobody has the answer' will strike a deep and painful chord with many parents whose children have developmental problems. I have long argued that autism is in danger of becoming a catch-all label du jour for a whole host of neurobiological disorders which are in reality syndromes unique to each child. This perceptive and highly articulate family have highlighted the plight of a group of children and their parents who are currently falling through the net. Their children have significant problems which merit serious attention but are currently either being ignored, and the problems trivialised, or called autistic which is clearly an over-reaction. It quickly becomes evident that new, less stigmatising and extreme labels are required for children with sensory integration problems who do not have autism or are only mildly affected. Erik Linthorst talks candidly about the effect that hearing the word autism had on him 'It was literally unbearable, I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep I couldn't work, I couldn't sit still...our brains just needed to catch up with this news.'.
  
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