Capturing the Friedmans
User Score
8.1 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 34 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 29 out of 34
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 34
  3. Negative: 5 out of 34

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  1. GunnarW.
    Jun 10, 2003
    10
    Excellent documentary, what a job by the production company.
  2. ChadS.
    Jul 27, 2003
    10
    Anti-heroes don't come any bigger than a pedophile. "Capturing the Friedmans" might have you siding with an admitted child molester. It's all very confusing. Like the American public favoring reality T.V. over scripted drama, why bother with the dysfunctional Icelanders from "The Sea" when you can observe the real thing? To me, "Capturing the Friedmans" demonstrates how close those Dogma films sometimes approach reality. "The Celebration", anybody? As The Friedmans scream at each other, the grandmother is hidden by one of the sons. When the confrontation is over, she materializes from behind her grandson and we see her walking dejectedly out of the room. Some people in the audience laughed because it looked very much like a black comedy. At other times, the laughter was born out of disbelief at the turns this incredible saga took. Here is the rare documentary that feels like a work of art. … Expand
  3. DavidM.
    Mar 30, 2005
    10
    Absolutly brilliant, gutted that I missed it originally. The best film I have seen in a long time!
  4. ClaireM.
    Jun 12, 2003
    9
    Very smartly paced and put together... there are a few big twists that you might not see coming at first. The Friedmans are fascinating, disturbing, bizarre... but never boring. Excellent, just don't take your grandmother to this one.
  5. XiongC.
    Jun 16, 2003
    9
    Not quite as bizzare as "Crumb", but certainly out there. Keeps a few surprises until near the end, instead of blasting you with them all at once. Really delivers.
  6. S.Rogers
    Jul 7, 2004
    10
    Elaine Friedman is, without a doubt, the greatest screen mother of all time. I can only imagine how hard it must have been for her...she is an inspiring, beautiful person who does what she believes in.
  7. SandieE
    Aug 29, 2005
    10
    Cannot stop thinking about it.
  8. WilliamM.
    Jun 12, 2003
    10
    A brilliant documentary that focuses much more on the complexities of this unique family rather than the crime drama. What a strange and fascinating group. An excellent directing job.
  9. MarileeB.
    Jul 16, 2003
    10
    I drug my husband to this film agaiinst his will, but he profusely thanked me for forcing him to watch. We talked about it for hours...who was truthful, who not, why would a family allow all this dirty laundry to be filmed, was anyone innocent? was anyone guilty as charged? what is memory, were the lawyers being ethical in talking, why did the witnesses exaggerate.... on and on into the evening. 4 days later I'm still thinking about Capturing the Friedmans. … Expand
  10. GregS.
    Feb 18, 2004
    10
    Brilliant documentary on par with Errol Morris's best.
  11. TonyR.
    Feb 2, 2004
    10
    This documentary is completely different from any other. One suspects it may be similar to other cases in which claims of sexual abuse to children that seemed so certain turned out to be false. But it is not. This film documents a family torn apart by accussations that we will never know for certain are true and, although there is ample suggestion they are false, dispositive evidence of their falsity is not available. This plays like the anti-Hollywood film with its characters that sponsors would be afraid to bring to the screen and an ambiguous answer to the question of what is true.… Expand
  12. MarcK.
    Aug 6, 2004
    10
    WOW! I wish I had seen this in the movies when it originally came out, rather than on Starz. Absolutely amazing...one of the very best documentaries I have ever seen. I definitely would like to read more about this. And I thought I knew families that were dysfunctional!
  13. Anna
    Mar 11, 2007
    10
    A brilliant and challenging documentary. stunning in every sense of the word. jarecki will challenge every notion you have held about sex offenders.
  14. JohnY.
    Jul 22, 2003
    10
    You couldn't ask for a more perfect documentary. Haunting, yet always captivating.
  15. RichardH.
    Dec 6, 2008
    10
    flows over many provocative questions not the least of which is "what's more important: pursuing and convicting the most evil of criminals or pursuing and maintaining justice?"

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
90 out of 100

Universal acclaim - based on 39 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 38 out of 39
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 39
  3. Negative: 0 out of 39
  1. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: Carrie Rickey
    88
    Isn't like the classic Japanese drama "Rashomon," which suggested that one person's perspective of an event gave him a different truth from the person standing elsewhere.
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  2. Salon.com
    Reviewed by: Charles Taylor
    80
    Andrew Jarecki could have done more to lay out the marriage of sexual and religious and social hysteria that made cases like this possible. But he deserves credit for having the guts to say, in this case and in so many like it, who suffered the most.
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  3. Variety
    Reviewed by: Scott Foundas
    90
    There's a kind of rawness on the screen that most movies never approach.
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