# Documentaries about extremely dysfunctional people **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 20, 2007, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691 "2007-06-20T07:31:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Hildo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@Johnny\_Hildo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Hildo)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/1 "2007-06-20T07:31:26Z")
So, I just watched [Sex: The Annabel Chong Story](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0453533/) and felt like I needed a shower afterwards. This is the story about the woman who shot her way to fame by having sex with 251 guys in 10 hours in the first (but not the last) of the ultra gang-bang porno film genre. She comes off as highly intellectual and full of joie de vivre for the first half. Then she comes off as a pathetic bipolar victim in the second half. She was never paid a dime for the gang-bang video. Her friends told her to sue, but she said it wasn’t about the money. Not all of the scores of men who showed up for the gang-bang video were tested for AIDS. She says, if she dies she dies. She did it for feminism. She seems to be a woman that had quite an intellect and her college teachers praised her for her writing ability. Nonetheless, even with a college degree, she goes on to pursue a porn career. We re-visit a London subway station where she was picked up by a guy and then raped by five of his friends. Then in a very creepy scene, we see her savagely hacking away at her arm with a knife so that she can feel…SOMETHING. She then quits porn for a while. We see a scene where she’s in her native Singapore and seems to crack under her perceived 1984-ish mode of community thinking. We also see a scene where her mother has found out what she’s been doing with her life and her mother chastises her. While they’re both sobbing, her mom says that the only reason she’s still talking to her daughter is in the hope that she will restore dignity to herself. Annabel, in tears, tells her mother that she will make her proud again. When she gets back to the States, we see that Annabel has re-entered the porn biz. And a good time was had by none. Can you suggest other documentaries of people with many fatal flaws? ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/2 "2007-06-20T07:55:27Z")
I think you meant [Sex: The Annabel Chong Story (1999) - IMDb](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181810/) ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/3 "2007-06-20T08:00:20Z")
“Crumb” fits the bill and “Sherman’s March” is about a dysfunctional familiar relationship, as is “Capturing the Friedmans” and “Brother’s Keeper” ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Hildo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@Johnny\_Hildo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Hildo)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 9:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/4 "2007-06-20T09:12:05Z")
[QUOTE=OpalCat] I think you meant [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181810/](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181810/) [/QUOTE] Damn browser cache. Sorry. Mods, maybe wanna fix it? ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 9:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/5 "2007-06-20T09:35:33Z")
Look no further: [Gummo](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gummo). ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/6 "2007-06-20T09:38:57Z")
_Sid and Nancy_. As the old blurb for the Teeming Millions once said, “Be glad they don’t live next door to you”. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/7 "2007-06-20T09:56:48Z")
[QUOTE=madmonk28] “Crumb” fits the bill [/QUOTE] Crumb was the first one that came to mind. When Robert Crumb is the most balanced member of the family… (Well, other than his daughter, but excluding her…) ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/8 "2007-06-20T11:53:42Z")
“Crumb” also was the first I though of. Two other movies came to mind tho the subject of neither were “extremely dysfunctional”- the multi-style docu-drama “American Splendor” about Harvey Pekar and “The Nomi Song” about Klaus Nomi. ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/9 "2007-06-20T12:04:27Z")
[Dancing Outlaw](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dancing_Outlaw) ---
**Author:** ![fessie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@fessie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fessie)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/10 "2007-06-20T12:08:27Z")
[_A Boy’s Life_](http://www.hbo.com/docs/programs/boys_life/index.html), a documentary by Rory Kennedy. I’ve seen it a couple of times, absolutely fascinating: > [@](#): > > According to his grandmother, (Robert is) an emotionally disturbed seven-year-old, whose hyperactive behavior and volatile tirades are symptoms of a serious personality disorder, barely controllable through medication and vigilance. However, to the boy’s mother, along with his therapist and school administrators, the real problem is not Robert. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/11 "2007-06-20T12:20:52Z")
[QUOTE=Trunk] [Dancing Outlaw](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dancing_Outlaw) [/QUOTE] Damn you! 🙂 I came into this thread to mention Jesco and _Dancing Outlaw_. For years after I first saw it, I was convinced that the whole thing had to be some kind of joke. A fake. But apparently it’s all real. :eek: One of the oddest things I’ve ever seen. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/12 "2007-06-20T14:36:21Z")
Well, there’s **Just, Melvin: Just Evil** , about Melvin Just, a true monster who apparently molested every female member of his family, and may have murdered a social worker. The documentary was filmed by Just’s grandson. Most of the film focuses on the lasting impact that Just’s deeds have made on his family. He caused a lot of damage. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/13 "2007-06-20T15:31:48Z")
[QUOTE=Tangent] Damn you! 🙂 I came into this thread to mention Jesco and _Dancing Outlaw_. For years after I first saw it, I was convinced that the whole thing had to be some kind of joke. A fake. But apparently it’s all real. :eek: One of the oddest things I’ve ever seen. [/QUOTE] I read the wikipedia article but it was useless. What is so strange about the guy? The article pretty much just said that he dances and he’s poor and he’s been mentioned in a bunch of songs. ---
**Author:** ![Fiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e274bd/32.png) [@Fiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiver)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/14 "2007-06-20T15:39:59Z")
Just last week I saw [Crazy Love](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crazy_Love_%282007_film%29), about the relationship between Burt Pugach and linda Riss. In the late 1950s Pugach, a spurned lover, arranged to have acid thrown in Riss’s face. It blinded and disfigured her. Sixteen years later, they married, and have been together ever since. ---
**Author:** ![Fiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e274bd/32.png) [@Fiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiver)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/15 "2007-06-20T15:42:35Z")
[QUOTE=Crafter\_Man] Look no further: [Gummo](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gummo). [/QUOTE] I haven’t seen _Gummo,_ but I didn’t think it was a documentary. ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/16 "2007-06-20T15:50:58Z")
[Whole](http://www.slate.com/id/2085402/) is a documentary about people obsessed with becoming amputees. ---
**Author:** ![whole\_bean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/96bed5/32.png) [@whole\_bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whole_bean)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/17 "2007-06-20T15:57:19Z")
I don’t think _Gummo_ is a documentary. I offer up, [The Devil and Daniel Johnston](http://www.sonyclassics.com/devilanddaniel/) ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/18 "2007-06-20T16:03:25Z")
Neither _Gummo_ nor _Sid and Nancy_ is a documentary. One of the very best “WTF is wrong with these people” documentaries is _Gray Gardens._ Amazing from beginning to end. ---
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/19 "2007-06-20T16:46:57Z")
I submit \*[Capturing the Friedmans](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0342172/plotsummary) \* (2003). Although, technically, it’s a non-fiction drama (listed as documentary on imdb) and there is no agreement about whether all the crimes alleged to have been committed were committed, there is some dysfunctionality there. It discusses the accusations of molestation by an American professor, Arnold, and his 18-year-old son, Jesse, of young students during their private computer classes. The accusations of both occur during the investigation after discovery of the father’s buying and selling of child pornography; other deeper hidden secrets are discovered too. The director, Andrew Jarecki, interviews the wife, Elaine, as well as Jesse, and his brother David, among other family members. The dysfunction of what was evident (the pornograpy) is there, as well as present in the fact that everyone has a different view of the character of the family. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691/20 "2007-06-20T17:37:59Z")
I’m surprised I’m the first person to mention [Grey Gardens](http://imdb.com/title/tt0073076/) as it’s the inspiration for a current [hit Broadway musical](http://www.greygardensthemusical.com/) and a big-budget movie [in development](http://imdb.com/title/tt0758751/). The documentary’s about “Big Edie” Bouvier Beale and her daughter “Little Edie” Bouvier Beale, Jackie Kennedy Onassis’s aunt and first cousin respectively who shared a filth filled dilapidated 28 room mansion, Grey Gardens, on Long Island. I won’t attempt to describe it (you can google it) but they’re quite interestingly dysfunctional, with all the contradictions you’d expect of impoverished people living in a huge waterfront mansion. PS- You can find clips of documentary and musical on YouTube. Use the terms _Grey Gardens staunch_ for one of the most famous scenes. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/documentaries-about-extremely-dysfunctional-people/408691.md?page=2)