49 Up
Filmmaker Michael Apted returns to the director's chair to catch up with the subjects he has been following since the 1963 telefilm 7 Up with this sequel to 1999's 42 Up. In the seventh installment of the long-running documentary series, Apted continues to follow the lives of everyone from aspiring jockey and part-time actor Tony to teacher Bruce and barrister John -- who returns to the series following a self-imposed exile that preceded 42 Up. While many of Apted's subjects seem to have settled into a comfortable existence, sharp-tongued Jackie and once-troubled Neil inject a bit of liveliness into the mix by recalling their colorful pasts and questioning the director's motivations with the Up series.
Director: Michael Apted
I am not British, was born 14 years before the subjects, and yet by now identify intensely with them, because some kinds of human experience -- teenage, work, marriage, illness are universal. You could make this series in any society.
49 Up is a precious document, and must viewing.
No matter their wealth or social status, these people share disappointments and elations and a sense that life, in the end, may be what life is about.
If you haven't gotten hooked already on Michael Apted's series--collectively, one of the great documentaries in the history of the cinema--you should prepare yourself for the latest installment, 49 Up.
Michael Apted's landmark films documenting the lives of a disparate group of Brits in seven-year intervals have always been fascinating from a sociological perspective. But the latest installment proves that they are undeniably brilliant cinematically as well.
Best Editing Factual
BAFTA Awards (2006)
Best Documentary
Chlotrudis Awards (2007)
Best Non-Fiction Film
New York Film Critics Circle Awards (2006)
Best Documentary DVD
Satellite Awards (2006)
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