Six Schizophrenic Brothers

I'm not sure why there were so many negative reviews. I had no expectations going into it and that's probably why I really enjoyed the documentary and found the story engrossing and intriguing. If you go into it thinking there will be answers and it will be neatly tied up at the end, you won't get that. This documentary reflects real life... Messy and frequently you're left with more questions than answers.

The story of the family is paced well and gives a well rounded understanding from the start as it takes you through the heartbreaking decline and breaking apart of a beautiful and idyllic family life. The trauma this family experienced is horrendous and I found the story telling from those both with and without schizophrenia to be particularly interesting. Very well put together.

I found myself furious at some of the siblings, but in a family where trauma, emotional distancing and mental illness has been an issue, it really makes sense how divided and distant the siblings are and the various perspectives based on how they coped with all the madness. I found the ending particularly interesting with Mary's kids.

If you are interested in mental illness and the way it deeply effects and damages families, and are not thinking you will receive answers, than I think you will truly enjoy this documentary. Only negative was the editing that was poorly done with each episode cutting off with the streaming. You miss the the last minute of every episode.

I've been involved in psychology in some form for over 35 years, from my days as a psych major and grad student, working in direct care, and teaching AP Psychology in high school for decades. I have never heard of a single family so stricken by this cruelest of conditions, so the title alone intrigued me.

The story of an exceedingly large Irish-Catholic family, with 20 years separating the oldest and youngest of 12 kids, 10 boys, followed by 2 girls. Six of the boys developed schizophrenia, most fairly severely.

Lots of interviews with most of the non-schizophrenia siblings, giving a fairly detailed picture of family life. But despite having the legendary Dr. Daniel Weinberger as one of the main experts, the filmmakers used him too sparingly and without the depth he could have added. For a documentary about a disorder that can have such heterogenous clinical presentations - and a three-hour one, at that! - there was precious little information about the symptoms of the disorder aside from hallucinations and delusions.

The story of Galvin family is fascinating, but with a broader perspective on schizophrenia, I feel like this was a lost opportunity to educate the public.

The documentary is compelling in its subject matter and the testimony of the people involved, but alas, there is a great deal of disorganization that can be difficult at times to keep track of. It makes it hard to truly form an understanding because they will jump around from brother to brother and flip to different points in the timeline in very jarring ways.

It's also worth noting that this documentary doesn't cover the full scope of what schizophrenia entails and that this shouldn't be someone's only reference point for researching it. The subject matter is also deeply disturbing and triggering at times, so I would definitely stress that viewers take that into consideration when deciding if they should watch it. This is not leisurely viewing.

Overall, the documentary is great! It's sad and eye opening to see how the family lived with SIX family members developing schizophrenia. The youngest sister Mary is a saint for continuing to take care of her brothers. The "healthy" brothers seem cold and callous towards their schizophrenic brothers. The one brother stated he's not a mental health professional so how could he help at all- many family members who take care of other sick family members are not medical doctors or professionals. They just want to push everything off on their sister and forget their brothers ever existed. Very sad to watch.

It's a shame that mental health is still such a stigma and society. It is one of the reasons that our jails are completely full because this country has not learned how to deal with mental health. I think these documentaries are important, and should continue as it relates to how it affects a family. I cannot believe a reviewer that blames the parents, when six of their children out of 12 have schizophrenia. This is a very serious disease of the mind. We also know that it is hereditary. My father was schizophrenic and luckily I'm not, but I continue to advocate for mental health while keeping a close eye on my daughter.

This is not a bad documentary. And one must remember that this is the late 60s in early 70s when a ton of mental institutions were being closed because medication was supposed to be the savior. Unless you have dealt with someone in your family, let alone six in your immediate family deal with this horrible disease. You should not comment on here and point fingers. It's heartbreaking, but these stories need to be told!