Two Cent Tuesday where I give my review of movies I have seen recently
In one week two people told me I should watch the documentary The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia. Since it was on Netflix Streaming I decided to give it a try. What a crazy movie this was. Definitely one of the most outrageous documentaries I have seen in a while.
The movie follows the White family from West Virginia for one year. The White family is one of the most notorious families in West Virginia. A family of criminals the Whites live a very outrageous lifestyle. The head of the clan is Mamie White who introduces the family at the beginning of the movie. Mamie father was D Ray White who was mild celebrity for his tap dancing. After he was killed there seemed to be tragedy passed down to the rest of the family. Jesco White Mamie's brother is now a tap dancer and was the subject of a short documentary (by the same director) called The Dancing Outlaw. As we get introduced to the other people in the family we learn that violence and drug addiction is the norm. One of the most memorable scenes in the movie is when Kirk White crushes up some pills and snorts them while in the hospital just after giving birth. To see how completely dysfunctional the family is and how much they embrace the outlaw status they have is jolting. It's just a typical day for them to go and pick someone up from jail or go to the bar and do drugs. The movie does not shine a very good light on West Virginia as one of the people they interview says that someone from the area came out of the tough life and went to M.I.T. why isn't anyone following him around with a camera? I am not sure why that is but the movie definitely makes me want to stay out of West Virginia. Is the movie making celebrities out of these people, it does feel like that a little. The end when Kirk finally checks herself into rehab is one of the more sobering parts but you get the feeling not much is going to change with anybody.
Overall Rating: B
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