by Travis Mackenzie Hoover
DEVIL'S PLAYGROUND
*½/****
directed by Lucy Walker
Contrary to Peter Weir's Witness, there is a point in a young Amish person's life where he/she is allowed to enjoy the things that lie outside the community; at 16, they are allowed to partake of the "English" world so that they might reject it later. This is a fascinating topic for a documentary, but Devil's Playground doesn't fulfil its potential. Instead of exploring the issues and pressures surrounding the decision of whether to be Amish, director Lucy Walker clumsily glosses over them, unable to see beyond the admittedly bizarre spectacle of wild bonneted youth under the influence of cars, cursing, and crystal meth. The result is a Pennsylvania Dutch Kids, with more of a kinky fascination with than an understanding of a phenomenon.
It's not for lack of willing subjects: Walker has a wide variety of willing participants, pro and con, but doesn't ask the right questions. Unable to flesh out her interviewees beyond a simple affirmative or negative remark, she relies on emotional outbursts and sentiments that simply wallow in angst while the nuts and bolts of their relationship with their parents and the intersection of Amish and English go unexplored. And after the shock of watching Amish Behaving Badly wears off, the umpteenth shot of partying kids seems like a desperate bid for attention. Perhaps realizing that her resulting footage is lean on interest, she is forced to rely too heavily on one youth, a troubled smack addict named Faron whose troubles go far beyond being Amish and remain obscure under Walker's sordid gaze. It's a Pennsylvania Dutch Babylon, and it's not worth your time.
