FULL SYNOPSIS
Assembled from 300 pages of official transcripts, 50 hours of audio diaries and Dictaphone records, and 201 home movies left behind by the free-thinking mother who railed against convention, director Morgan Dews' intimate documentary follows the journey of an unconventional 1960s-era Connecticut couple who turned to psychiatry in order to save their failing marriage, inadvertently tearing their family apart in the process. Allis and Charlie were attempting to find out why their marriage was crumbling when they decided to submit their family to group and individual therapies. Later, as the family began recording their conversation and conflicts as instructed by doctors, pills were prescribed and family members were sent away for evaluation. At this point, Allis began to question the effectiveness of the treatment. After Allis' death, her children discovered that their mother had hidden away virtually all of the films, audiotapes, and medical records from this turbulent period of their family history. In this film, director Dews draws on those materials to assemble a curious exploration of his family's struggle. The result is a film that is deeply personal as it explores the downfall of a typical American family, and highly informative as it explores the mores of a pivotal point in 20th century history. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Release date:February 20, 2009