Big Enough

i watched this very moving documentary on PBS. questions about accepting what is different, reproduction rights, discrimination, mixed raced mixed sizes relationships are all discussed and witnessed in a very respectful and touching way. The director shows the life of several little people and allows us to go into their homes and see how they carry their everyday routines. however the documentary goes beyond these scenes, it gives a voice to people who have serious thoughts about whether they should have children, marry or date at all. But ultimately we are left with simply a human issue, put aside all our difference, be it small size or average size, we are humans who want to work, be productive, share our lives with someone else, dance and have a laugh. some of the little people want to improve their lives by becoming activists and being outspoken. I, even though an average size person, could relate very much with their lives as a gay man. Issues of reproduction and acceptance are simply the same as with other minorities and how majority wants to regulate (or eliminate) our existence. In particular some little people (as they refer themselves) talk about some testing on fetuses which determines if the child will be dwarf or not and they question whether families will abort the child, and thus eliminating little people community as small as it already is. highly highly recommended.

You rarely come across documentaries that completely startle you even though the message is about life. Jan Krawitz made a wonderful documentary that should be used as a strong teaching tool for tolerance. You can't help feeling bad for the little people that are portrayed in this film, but then again, the whole idea of the film is to show they are content with their lives, that they don't feel bad about their existence. They even bring up a broader topic that will definitely be talked about for future generations: genetic engineering.

What will happen to little people or mentally handicapped people? Sadly, the documentary didn't have enough time to delve more deeply into the subject, for the true purpose was to show people that we shouldn't feel bad for them. Sure life is tough when you live in a world built for tall people, but the documentary really demonstrates how the people have worked to make their lives as normal as possible. Hopefully more people will get to view this documentary.