The "spoilers" in this review are a couple of quotes from the series (personally, I find just about any quotes to be spoilers, as that's part of experiencing it fresh) but they will be at the end and duly prefaced.
Roger Ebert put this series on his list of the ten greatest films ever, and although it might not quite make that echelon for me, I wouldn't fault anyone for putting it there.
My favorite lines from the film sum it up very well, and both come from Nick. At first, I was very critical of it not being a "proper" study, which it isn't. But once you get past that hurdle and just allow it to be no more (or less) than just what it is, it has loads to offer beyond the base voyeuristic value in terms of insight and opportunities for soul-searching for the attuned viewer. In essence, the series is less about its practical agenda -- watching how these specific individuals evolve -- and more about us learning how people, or *a* person evolves. In the end, for the viewers lucky enough to be open to it, following these individuals is less about learning about them and more about learning about ourselves.
With that, I'll give the quotes of Nick's I was referring to, which essentially sum up my feelings about the series (QUOTE SPOILER ALERT):
At age 21: "It's just that the limitations of such things as what the audience require and the time don't allow it to be a real study. I mean if we accept this, then okay I think it's probably good entertainment."
At 56, he gets closer to my feelings about its value beyond merely good entertainment: "The idea of looking at a bunch of people over time and how they evolve -- that was a really nifty idea. It isn't a picture, really, of the essence of Nick, or Suzy, it's a picture of everyone. It's how a person, any person, how they change.... It's not an absolute accurate picture of *me*. But it's a picture of somebody. And that's the value of it."
Roger Ebert put this series on his list of the ten greatest films ever, and although it might not quite make that echelon for me, I wouldn't fault anyone for putting it there.
My favorite lines from the film sum it up very well, and both come from Nick. At first, I was very critical of it not being a "proper" study, which it isn't. But once you get past that hurdle and just allow it to be no more (or less) than just what it is, it has loads to offer beyond the base voyeuristic value in terms of insight and opportunities for soul-searching for the attuned viewer. In essence, the series is less about its practical agenda -- watching how these specific individuals evolve -- and more about us learning how people, or *a* person evolves. In the end, for the viewers lucky enough to be open to it, following these individuals is less about learning about them and more about learning about ourselves.
With that, I'll give the quotes of Nick's I was referring to, which essentially sum up my feelings about the series (QUOTE SPOILER ALERT):
At age 21: "It's just that the limitations of such things as what the audience require and the time don't allow it to be a real study. I mean if we accept this, then okay I think it's probably good entertainment."
At 56, he gets closer to my feelings about its value beyond merely good entertainment: "The idea of looking at a bunch of people over time and how they evolve -- that was a really nifty idea. It isn't a picture, really, of the essence of Nick, or Suzy, it's a picture of everyone. It's how a person, any person, how they change.... It's not an absolute accurate picture of *me*. But it's a picture of somebody. And that's the value of it."