World of Compulsive Hoarders

According to this film, 1 in every 200 people in the UK hoards things, unable or unwilling to throw them away. A form of obsessive compulsive disorder, at its worst it sees homes filled with rubbish and sufferers cut off from society. Not exactly being able to take the moral high ground when it comes to OCD (how many reviews do I have on this site now?), I decided to watch this film out of curiosity but also aware of how I do view those that hoard. Having worked for a short time in the offices of a local government Environmental Health department, I do have quite a negative view of people who hoard – having seen the pain it causes to the families and neighbours.

Clutter is one thing but living with mouldy waste and the risk of vermin is another and it is hard to feel sorry for people who like to have half-eaten pies or loads of newspapers round the house. I came to this film looking for a bit of an understanding and perhaps enough to convince me that this habit is a "illness" and not just a sign of someone with no interest in hygiene. In this regard I don't think the film succeeded because it didn't make me feel that much sympathy or empathy for the hoarders but rather just more sympathy for those caught up with them. So OK something is driving William to collect rubbish (including his own faeces in buckets in the shed) and I can understand a disease stopping him seeing it as wrong, but he just seems totally unaware of his community (who, incidentally pay the tax that allows him his weekly benefit). Likewise Roy doesn't seemed moved at all by the tears of his wife to even try to find room for change and his frustration with his daughter during clearing is hard to watch. Maureen and Lloyd offer a little more hope but even still you get the feeling that as soon as you turn your back they will have rubbish piled high in their front rooms again.

The film doesn't convince in exploring the whys of the situations and I felt the people behind the camera could have pushed the people with question after question to try and force the people to examine themselves. I appreciate that this was a documentary and thus a genre that shouldn't push or guide the subjects but I'm not sure what they achieved here by just pointing the camera at these people. Interesting to see inside the homes of these people but I wanted to see inside their heads and the film never really looked like doing that to any significant degree.

Yet another disposable little documentary that acts as cheap microscope to the lives of various individuals who all share the same disorder. Hoarding. Yes, an exploration into the mental inability to discard objects. Whether it be due to fear of losing personal possessions or the indicative qualities of laziness. As they say "one man's rubbish is another one's treasure".

Problem is, we don't know what really prevents these individuals from battling their inner hoarding demons, because the documentary showcases these innocent lives as if it were a freak show. Collecting over five hundred bicycles, general rubbish or even unable to dispose of one's faecal matter, should be enough to creating an engaging psychosis with the audience. Alas, they are portrayed through the smallest of windows, simply presenting their lifestyle instead of dissecting it. There are moments when certain cases are faced with eviction from the local council, yet the mundane interviewing techniques and lack of urgency makes the whole ordeal too pedestrian. One of those shorter documentaries to watch when your eating your dinner, actually, I take that back. Don't eat food, and make sure you shower afterwards.