42 Up

One of the most important ongoing social and cultural projects of our time, this series of films has documented the lives of a number of people from the age of seven up. Currently the participants are in their mid-forties, now in a position to reflect on the past as well as to speculate about their future from a reasonably well-informed perspective. It is truly fascinating to get even this brief glimpse of how these people have progressed through their lives, from the fresh enthusiasm of early childhood through the angst and pain of the teen years, then coping with the various ups and downs of adulthood. Many have children of their own; some have lost parents along the way. Most have remained in their native England, where social class is more of an issue than here in the States. Class struggle is a topic of discussion in the film, though touched upon rather briefly.

This reviewer has been watching Michael Apted's project for the past fourteen years and is approximately the same age as the participants, a fact which makes the film that much more involving. One feels a connection with these people. Reviewing these people's lives is much like looking back at one's own, which strengthens the feelings of warmth and familiarity that this film evokes.

Mr. Apted has done an excellent job with these films and the reviewer wishes to express appreciation to him as well as to the interviewees.

The original idea was to see these kids of England in the year 2000. Director Michael Apted returns to see these kids, and I wonder what he sees of his charges. I think the social studies aspect is now mostly gone. They're not simply a rich child, or a poor child. These are individual characters each deserving of our attention.

We are now finding these people have surprising drama. The biggest stories are Tony had an affair, Simon returns to the series, and Bruce helps out Neil. Simon missed 35 Up and got divorced. He's remarried now and happier and more willing to do the series. On the other hand, John was never happy with the series and skip this one. Charles continues to skip the series and Peter is gone now also. The kids of the kids are growing up now, and the world keeps moving on.

In the most sociologically fascinating and perceptive documentary series ever produced, Michael Apted has made this enormously thought provoking series a labour of love. He has taken eleven seven year olds in 1964, and has filmed them every seven years since then. The results have been breathtaking. In seeing footage from when these now grown adults were little, we see how the boy becomes a man and the girl becomes a woman. We see as each attempt to reach their hopes and dreams. There are successes and failures (including one heartbreaking one), but we get more than that. We get an overwhelming sense of the connection and delicate fabric of human life.

This film series takes the adage "Give me a child until age 7, and I'll give you the man" and blows it out of the water. I've been a fan of the "Up Series" since my first viewing of "28 Up". Watching these precocious 7-year-olds grow into adulthood right before my eyes has sparked some much needed self-examination of my own life. That may be the greatest value of the "Up Series", causing the viewer to project themselves into the film and see how their own lives have changed and developed. The movie ticket is certainly cheaper than a trip to the psychologist.

Some highlights of this edition:

-Tony, the would-be jockey and racetrack numbers runner who became a London cabbie. Despite his infidelities, Tony is still married to his forgiving wife and seems to take great pride in his children. Tony has now become more reflective about his life, taking a thoughtful stroll through the closed down racetrack where he once rode, and getting misty-eyed when discussing his late mother and father. Always frank and pragmatic, he says of his comfortable suburban home, "I'm a cabbie. This is probably as far as I'm gonna get."

-Bruce, the good-natured, relationship challenged school teacher who was teaching in Bangladesh, is back teaching in London and has finally found Mrs. Right. Among the interesting tidbits of information you learn from Apted's DVD commentary is that he broke his rule of only filming the subjects every 7 years so he could be present to film Bruce's wedding.

-Nick, the physicist who moved to the US, returns home to his father's farm.

We meet his brothers and are treated to some beautiful shots of the English contryside. In his commentary Apted discusses his regrets regarding the way he edited Nick's wife in previous episodes. She now refuses to do interviews for the films and also refuses to let their son participate.

-Andrew, the only one of what Apted refers to as the "Three Wise Men", the upper class boys, who participated in 42 Up. Successful well-adjusted, happily married, we see Andrew and his family on a vacation to New York City (with several pre-9/11 shots of the WTC). Thanks to the DVD commentary, we learn that John doesn't particularly like Apted and only agreed to be interviewed for "35 Up" if his interview was conducted by Apted's assistant director. The other upper class boy, Charles, is ironically a documentary director for the BBC and has consistently refused to participate since "21 Up".

-Neil, the bright, animated 7-year-old who ended up dropping out of college and living in a trailer. Neil has always been the most compelling character in the "Up Series". His obvious intelligence exists in sharp contrast with mental problems and bouts with depression. Every fan of the films would probably admit to worrying whether or not Neil would survive to the next episode. Happily, Neil is now involved in local politics. Despite his eccentric appearance and lack of a paying job (he makes no money from his job with the Liberal Democrats), Neil is no longer the rambling hermit of "28 Up". His turn around can partly be attributed to some assistance from fellow "Up" subject Bruce. Neil even participated in Bruce's wedding.

Let's hope Apted comes up with a DVD compilation that includes footage from all the films. Instead of the brief 15 minute updates we get for each subject in "42 Up", it would be nice to see a half-hour or so on each, as well as footage of those who no longer participate (like Peter). Apted's DVD commentary is boring at times, but includes some fascinating behind-the-scenes information which devoted fans will enjoy. In conclusion, the "Up Series" stands as one of the most important and engrossing documentaries ever committed to celluloid.

I can't say enough about this series. I just watched 28 up, 35 up and 42 up all in about a week's time, so there are a lot of things to talk about within the entire series, rather than just in this one particular film. But I'll do my best to focus on 42, since that is the film I am commenting on.

As a film on its' own, 42 up is probably the most interesting of the series as far as watching the people change physically over the years goes. Each subject filmed at the six different stages appears (except for those that had dropped out of the program) and you get to see how they have transformed over the years. 42 is also great because you also get to see how film techniques (& stock) have evolved over the years along with the people. In the present time, the film looks beautiful and rich in color while each successive film appears murkier and murkier over time until you get the original black and white of 1964. The problem with 42 Up, if you were going to watch just this one film, is that because there are so many flashbacks of people at various stages, this leaves little room for getting to know them better (during a 2 hour time frame). I have talked to people who say, "I am just going to watch 42 up because they give you all the background stuff anyway.." I say NO!.....

For a richer experience, and this is what I did so you can take it for what it's worth, watch 28, 35, and 42 up at least so you can get to know these people fully at each stage. There are crucial things that happen to these people in 35 for instance which does not show up in 42.(Neil!!John!!) I cannot even view each film as seperate, because they all seem sewn together somehow. Taken as a whole, they are amazing to watch..and the suspense in wondering what happened to each over the next seven years is truly there if you start early in the series. So watch some of the others before you watch 42 to get the full effect.

On to the characters..who are real people. Their stories are so beautiful to watch unfold over time it is truly amazing they were captured at each stage as they grew up. And you can even get the feeling by the end how large their lives really are and that they extend way beyond the borders of the film which the filmmakers obviously knew and luckily never once tried to pretend that they could completely capture the essence of a person on film. You just get tiny snippets of who these people are yet by the end you can't stop thinking about them, they become a part of you. I cannot think of any movie or series of movies where the characters were so richly drawn as these were, especially over the course of time. A beautiful, wonderful series that everybody should own.

Questions (if anyone can answer them for me) 1) Whatever happened to John???? why don't they even mention him (like they do some of the others who dropped out) in 35 & 42? He disappears after 28! What happened to him??? 2) Are there any other projects going on like this in America or on a global scale? I think it would be a brilliant idea to do this similarly Globally to investigate and compare cultures all over the world! 3)Will there be a 49 Up or was that the end of the series?