Children of Darkness (1983)

Directed by

Ara Chekmayan, Richard Kotuk

Genre

documentary film

Country

United States

Runtime

57 min

Rating

7.0 of 10 from 14 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This documentary examines the lives of mentally ill and emotionally troubled children and young adults in US institutions. It includes interviews with parents whose children died in suspicious circumstances while in custody and with staff who acknowledge they cannot cure the patients.

soberingclinicaldisturbingmatter-of-factgloomyinvestigativeharrowingsubdued

What happens

Children of Darkness is a 1983 American documentary film on PBS produced by Ara Chekmayan and Richard Kotuk. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. The documentary focuses on mentally ill and emotionally troubled children and young adults living in various private and public residences in the United states. The film focuses on state institutions, such as the Eastern State School in Pennsylvania, the Élan School in Poland, Maine, Sagamore Children's Centre, a Long Island (state run) institution and South Beach in New York psychiatric hospitaland features interviews with various parents, whose children died under suspicious circumstances while in custody. Presented alongside these are interviews with various staff members who work with the disabled children, emphasising the staff's awareness of their inability to cure them. One of the drugs that caused patient deaths in the South Beach hospital is mesoridazine, which was withdrawn from the United States market in 2004 due to dangerous heart side effects. The Élan School closed in 2011 due to criticism of its alleged treatment of patients. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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