Devil's Playground (2002)

Director: Lucy Walker Genres: Documentary, Indie-Arthouse Cinema, Lifestyle Origin: USA Certificate: M Languages: English Running Time: 77 min

synopsis

Amish teenagers experience and embrace the modern world as a rite-of-passage before deciding which life they will choose.

"Haunting, Provocative and Unexpected" Los Angeles Times. Winner of: Best Documentary Grand Prize, AFI DV Festival; Special Jury Prize, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival; Audience Award, Sarasota International Film Festival.An intriguing documentary focusing on a unique group of people, The Amish youth. It follows a group of Amish teenagers through an extraordinary period of their lives known as "Rumspringa", literally meaning "running around". On turning 16, they are turned loose from their strict eighteenth century beliefs and upbringing and invited to experience the outside world until they can decide whether or not to commit to a lifetime within the Amish community. This freedom mixed with deep religious roots proves to sometimes be a brutal combination. Devil's Playground is the first film to ever get inside the Amish community and revolutionise our understanding of this unique American subculture.
*MR