49 Up

In 1964, the first of a long series of documentary film was made. It was called 7-Up. Every seven years since then, Michael Apted (an assistant, at the first film) would go back and reinterview the dozen or so kids in the original film.

Not everyone has participated in every film. Indeed, one guy, from a group of three teens, has avoided interviews in the last three films, odd, considering he was a reporter. Another has skipped two of the films.

The biggest innovation to occur since the filming has been DVD and possibly Amazon. For a long, long time, it was hard to see any of these films outside England. Because of the length of time between films, and the lack of VCR/DVD technology, each successive film often needed to go back to early films to remind you of what happened earlier.

Watching these films, you notice things about British culture. For example, class differences are more noticeable (at least, if you're paying attention to it). Also, nearly everyone has gone through divorce, rich or poor. Indeed, those from the upper class seem to have parents that all divorced.

You also notice how much better the cast is at expressing themselves. Their command of the English language, even among the working class, seems far in excess of someone comparable in the US.

It's too bad that the films decided to protect the kids. None of them are interviewed. I suppose the people participating have found it highly intrusive, and don't want to subject their kids to this kind of scrutiny.

There's also a strong sense of the changes in the country, from life and dress in the 70s, to the prevalence of Indians/Pakistanis in the 90s.

We've yet to hit the passing of anyone (I think), although they are getting to an age where it might be of concern. Indeed, one wonders how long Michael Apted can keep this up as well.

It's one of the documentaries I'm looking forward to seeing.