Trevor Beckett 791 subscribers Share 522K views 9 years ago Brilliant, unflinching documentary on alcoholism by Kent film maker Paul Watson. Throughout the documentary there are cut ins of Watson discussing ethical implications during the filming process. Play over 265 million tracks for free on SoundCloud. If there was any moment in the film where you could perceive Watson as exploiting them it would be when he interviews and observes them whilst or after theyve been drinking heavily, of course Watson cannot control what comes out of their mouth, he does have control over what to show to the audience, however showing these moments to the audience ensures that Watson has observed in full, the effects of alcohol and his points of its destructiveness comes across. Rain in My Heart was Paul Watson's good deed in this naughty world. He found the only four people that were willing to take part in this film not to paint them in a bad light, but rather to show the general public what excessive consumption of alcohol could do to a person and how it can affect them physically and mentally, as well as their families. Therefore, Watsons approach definitely satisfied me with how delicately he treats the patients and clearly recognizes his role as filmmaker. Rain In My Heart is not an easy documentary to watch. I realised after I posted this! Alcoholism is a very sensitive subject for some and as a viewer I felt he was exploiting his subjects; to a certain extent. How could you go, my love Without a thought Rain in My Heart I thought was a very dark, powerful and hard hitting documentary. But there is no evidence of this happening. When he asked Toni to call and talk to his family, for example. It was really uncomfortable scene to me, Paul trully showed the seriousness of alcohalism and it must influence to the audience. 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. He is a quite good interviewer, especially in the interaction between him and the characters. High-quality Rain In My Heart Wall Art designed and sold by artists. I believe it was not his job to cure the patients, neither was it to encourage them to drink, however his involvement with the hospital and its patients was simply to reveal the complex and brutal causes and effects of alcoholics. This allowed the subjects to be themselves around him as Mark said that he didnt hide his bottle of wine from Watson and the camera because this is what the film is all about. After all, I am satisfied by what Watson did to deal with accusations. But I find he violated the rules of documentary as he did interfere with the subjects and pushed them to an extent that made them fall back. It is true that his documentary can be judged and considered as an observational one: the filmmaker lets the interviewee talk about his or her problems and express all his or her weaknesses. 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. Tonis most exploitative scene, as I believe, is when she is shown unconscious a few days before her death. Is this the feel good factor we crave? 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. This powerful documentary from fly-on-the-wall pioneer Paul Watson provides a raw account of four alcohol abusers from the impoverished Medway towns of north Kent. I personally feel that Paul Watson did not exploit his subjects in the film. This is an extremely special place to hunt mule deer and we have an intimate knowledge of the terrain. http://www.theguardian.com/culture/tvandradioblog/2006/nov/22/mattersoflifeanddeath. At this weeks lecture, the first slide read Documentary is most creditable when it comes as close as possible to the experience of someone actually there. Watson most definitely fulfilled what he set out to do and in order to do that, I feel he had to push the boundary as far as he did to achieve this hard-hitting documentary. There are certainly points in this film in which I believe that the subjects were exploited. SACRAMENTO, Calif. More rain and snow swept through Northern California on Monday, a day after a historic downpour set records and led to dangerous situations on roadways, street flooding,. 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. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rain-In-My-Heart-Documentary-In-Memory-Of-My-Dad-Toni-And-Vanda/233416877232. Paul Watson was capturing the real lives of these alcoholics, he was not interfering with their actions and allowed alcoholics who were told if they drink anymore they could die, to drink. In life, many people depend on rain for their livelihood and more. And youd be a hypocrite if you didnt think it. Maybe the subjects are letting Watson film them like this as a message to say this is a life you dont want to live and in saying that does Watsons exploiting of the subjects send a bigger message that in turn may help people going through the same things. These subjects were all willing participants, however their capacity to give consent comes into question. Also, I think he had a desire to understand his characters and the reasons of being whothey are. On the other hand, he showed the subjects at their worst, but almost continuously. As with the film, this documentary presents some uncomfortable and hard to bear realities. The edit involves numerous repeats of dialogue from the patients, which is played at random and juxtaposing episodes, some even without the visuals which make it seem part of the dialogue (for example, when Vanda slams the phone down in anger). I feel like Rain in My Heart must be a controversial documentray in terms of how dealing with the ethics in this film. 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. The latest Arizona headlines, breaking news, in-depth investigations, politics, and local community stories that matter to you. To argue my point further, there is a particular example from Rain In My Heart that exemplifies this problem. I feel that to say Watson exploits his subjects within the film is unfair. Post Thanks / Like Thanks (Given) 0 Thanks (Received) 0 Likes (Given) 0 Likes (Received) 0 Sign-in or Try it free for 3 months. Probably. I feel he mistakes this forced friendliness by asking more and more personal questions as he continues to film her. The subject is not exploited as she has consented Watson to film her in her most tragic state and all of this psychological revealing is not only for Watsons own good but for the audience as they are being warned off the overuse of alcohol. Critic Richard Brody (http://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/taking-it-off-for-the-holocaust) described it: Schindlers List features several of the most vulgar and repellent scenes ever filmed. If the subjects are happy to be filmed then I dont see the problem as long as they have a stable state of mind. He made this film to show people about the effects of alcoholism, and I think he achieved his goal. But in saying all this we must remember that all the people in the film agreed to be in the documentary. And I think shots show the photographer and the really things that Watson suffered rise the trustiness of this documentary. As an audience member I am conflicted as to how satisfied I am with how Watson deals with accusations about him exploiting the audience. He says My job is to explain, not entertain. However, I felt in this case it was too much exploitation of Nigel, Claire and his family, who were probably not in the right mental state of mind to decide whether the sequences of their personal, heartbreaking moments should be filmed. Penny recalls being so scared. Therefore I agree that their lives were exposed (as they agreed and wanted them to be) but they were not harshly exploited by Paul. Overall, I do not feel that Paul Watson has exploited the subjects in his film. But I dont appreciate so much. The world was slowly healing. The consent was given while the participants were fully aware of what they were agreeing to, which makes it difficult to accuse Paul Watson of having really exploited his subjects. 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, as I mentioned previously, Watson neither encourages nor halts the emotional stress of the patients, he simply asks them questions about their mental state and at times even asks the patients if they would prefer the camera to be turned off. Four alcoholics in and out of hospital over a two month period, reality at its most real. However, Watsons humanity and compassion shines through. After filming Vanda revealing what the monsters in her head were, she states Im a little bit pickled (drunk), to which Paul Watson says Im taking advantage of you. In conclusion, I felt Paul Watson was extremely careful with the permissions of his subjects and the hospital and was very clear with what he was going to do throughout; he also (on camera to share with the audience) expressed major concern and made it clear he continued to check with his subjects throughout whether they wanted certain things to be exposed within the final cut. I have noticed that many people discuss this film on various alcoholism-related websites and quite a number of people stopped drinking after watching it or at least took it into serious consideration, and even if one person was/ will be saved by this film than it was definitely worth it. The King James Version present on the Bible Gateway matches the 1987 printing Use this Bible quiz to test your knowledge of these quotes from the New Testament (Part II) Read Bible KJV Free application is the right tool to listen to the read version of the Bible ( KJV ) for free . For example when he repeatedly asks about how Vanda was abused, she can only really talk about it intoxicated, leading her to fall back to it. With a limited number of options given that he had great difficulty finding a location and subjects to film it was essential that Watson was able to capture the gritty reality of alcoholism and addiction in a way that will haunt the audience for some time. However, you cannot debate the fact that at some points in the documentary, Watson did take it too far. I believe he does ask himself sincere ethical questions and that he answers them truthfully. However, it doesnt justify the ignore her drinking even he had a chance to stop her. Critical and disbelieving responses after giving personal information in a safe space, can cause as much pain and loneliness as the original abuse. Watson states from the very beginning of the film that he is working with the only four patients who have agreed my intrusions and me filming their hell. 0. It cant be argued that the documentary would have given Watson some amount of attention from viewers for filming subjects in the vulnerable state they were in, its in this sense that the word exploitation would be more appropriate. This shows how relationships are built up when filmmaking and how subjects and even the interviewer forms attachments. He leads the interviewees go into their deep heart and gradually express their ideas. By the time she married at 18 she was a serious drinker - the marriage didn't last, nor did a succession of jobs despite her being able to speak at least two other languages. Registered User. I think to use the word exploitative to describe the techniques used by Watson to film Rain in my Heart upon his subjects is an unfair judgment. After drinking heavily, people are definitely not in a normal status, which lead to a question that in what situation Paul Watson get the consent from these alcoholics. At one point it says: This type of documentary is not the best way to explain or explore alcoholisms origins. In all of these I recognise issues which could be perceived as exploitative. Things which have been considered problematic in Watsons Rain In My Heart include: informed consent from his subjects, the argument of whether or not the filmmaker should intervene in the filming process, the appropriateness of certain parts of the film, most notably Nigels funeral and his grieving family, and finally, the relationship between Watson and his subjects. Chapter 1. And the audience is living the pain through the subjects, and that is the best outcome to achieve, making the subjects exploitation almost worthwhile. Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. I would have to answer that most likely, rhetorical question, by saying yes! I mean most people wouldntHer reaction to his question is also an example as she seemed to be in pain by his disbelief and lack of trust.she even said why else would she be in the state she is in if not because of the trauma she had been through? 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