Devil's Playground

I thought for sure that a movie about Amish-teenagers-gone-bad would be a series of images of Amish kids dressed in traditional garb drinking, getting high, and sleeping around. I expected it to be a spectacle which would get old fast, and I went into the movie with this bias. It turned out to be one of the best documentaries I've seen in a while. For one thing, the director had the perfect balance of showing a broad social situation (rebellious Amish kids in general) and a more character centered story (the drug addicted Amish youth Faron). You're getting the factual information you need, as well as the emotional punch of what Faron is going through. The director is able to show very clearly the effect of Amish society on these kids without ever forcing a direct connection or being exploitative.

I saw this film by chance at a friends house and I was immediately sucked into it. It was interesting to learn about a group of people whom I knew existed but never heard much about. This documentary gave me a great appreciation for how these people live their lives,I personally could never live like that. Anyone interested in learning about Amish teenagers should watch this film. It is surprising how many similarities and differences there are between Amish teenagers, and the average American teenagers.

Sex, drugs, heavy metal/rap music, Nintendo. These are not things one would normally associate with the Amish, but there you go, it's time to learn about DEVIL'S PLAYGROUND Most of us probably view the Amish as isolationists and backward thinkers. They don't use electricity or modern conveniences. They travel by horse and carriage. They dedicate themselves to their church and community for life or are banished if they give up the church and head out into the "English" world. This is mostly true, except for one period in an Amish person's life.

At age 16, all children of Amish parents are given the option of Rumspringa (Pennsylvania Dutch for "running around"). Rumspringa can last minutes, hours, days, weeks, or even years, depending on the individual. During this time they are allowed to do whatever they like, which includes drinking, sexual relations, smoking, driving (cars), and doing illicit drugs.

One such person is Faron, an 18-year-old son of an Amish minister. He's been out of his parents' house for almost two years and gets involved with crystal meth dealers in order to support his own drug habit. His life spirals out of control, but his parents are helpless to do anything about it because of the Rumspringa tradition. Faron has to choose his own path. But with peer pressures so high, the decision is not an easy one for kids who want to explore a world beyond the Amish communities they grew up in. You can't help but cringe with fear as Faron drops in and out of the drug culture, nearly gets himself killed in a car accident, and eventually finds love and a decent job many miles away from his parents.

Other kids have similar issues, but battle more with internal conflicts than external pleasures and material things. One is Velda, a pretty Amish girl who left her community and found depression nesting within her. Trying to discover who she was without the help of her family and her church leads her down some dark paths but she eventually succeeds in life by finding a job and going to college; quite a surprise considering the Amish don't educate their young beyond the 8th grade level.

This documentary certainly was an eye-opener. Who would've thought that the Amish deal with similar problems that non-Amish parents are forced to deal with? The information gathered by the film makers is impressive but limited, as the Amish become reclusive once they join the church. But the kids have no such qualms about being filmed since they have yet to take their oath.

I am disturbed mostly by the fact that the Amish don't educate their young beyond a certain grade level because they feel it causes too much "pride" (one of the seven deadly sins). But this also creates an interesting paradox. If you don't educate your kids, they are destined for menial jobs. The upside (I guess) is that this makes it difficult to support themselves if they decide to try and make a go at living in the outside world. Not surprisingly, the return rate from Rumspringa back to the church is 90 percent.

To a large extent, the inherent friction between America's central majority and diverse religious minority groups is controlled and channeled by a matrix of Constitutional Law principles. Court decisions insure that minority rights are protected against what often has been the mainstream's desire or perceived need to force assimilation or even attempt destruction through law or mob action. The latter has happened in American history with regard to the Shakers and Mormons. Both groups and Southern snake-handling churches have frequently encountered major legal restrictions. .

The Amish occupy a more protected place than some other Christian fundamentalists. Living in large communities side by side with the "english", as they call without distinction all others, their energy, excellent and desired produce and products and reputation for orderly, crime-free lives has insured respect. Temptation rather than persecution is the main foe of the Amish commitment to a simple lifestyle.

Director Lucy Walker's documentary, "Devil's Playground" is a rare but possibly too limited view of Amish life, largely in Indiana. The Amish covet their privacy and most members of the church do not allow themselves to be filmed or interviewed although strictures vary from community to community. Generally, the Amish eschew using much of the apparatus of American communal and political life. For instance, while they will not send children to public school past the eighth grade, relief from compulsory education laws through a Supreme Court decision only came about because several Amish parents passively permitted others to litigate on their behalf (Wisconsin v. Yoder).

"Devil's Playground" introduces the viewer to "rumspiga," the planned release off the parental and community leash of teenagers on their sixteenth birthday. According to the young men and women interviewed, virtually anything goes during an indefinite period of freedom that can end in a few months or go on to age 21. At some point each youth decides whether to embark on a life outside Amish society or take church vows that are considered inviolable once voluntarily assumed. Defectors are shunned by family and friends if they leave the church after taking the vows.

The film follows Amish youth to huge parties monitored by justifiably concerned Indiana police. Sex appears to be a route for some but dancing and excessive consumption of alcohol is a key activity for most, especially the males. Some fall into the world of drugs, including dealing. Faron, a clearly troubled young man, is followed by the camera crew from innocent flirtation and all-night partying to serious drug taking to felony selling. Subsequent threats to his life came after he cooperated with the police.

The females seem to be more hesitant about unshackling fetters than males. The boys all adopt everyday teen garb while the girls experiment with beer and cosmetics but largely remain clothed in traditional attire. Interestingly, many of the boys take on "english" girlfriends, a safety mechanism that actually lessens the likelihood of their permanently abandoning their community.

A number of Amish youths discuss their family relations and whether they will join the church or adopt a new lifestyle. Many comments have a rehearsed quality, not surprising when the speakers haven't been brought up to freely express themselves.

A postscript notes that some ninety percent of Amish youth resolve to join the church, giving up cars for buggies, t-shirts for bland work clothes and beer for juice. One clear clue as to why the retention rate is so high is the virtual total lack of intellectual curiosity or desire for education in the Amish youth population. What seems to be a period of genuine freedom is really a very clever release of people whose likelihood to question or rebel is suitably repressed rather than advanced by an episode of largely aimless partying.

What isn't clear from "Devil's Playground" is the extent to which Amish youth in general go as hog wild as the participants in the documentary. The young interviewees wanted the attention of the film-maker for reasons ranging from narcissism to a need to self-justify life-altering decisions. It would have been very useful to incorporate insights from non-Amish scholars, including psychologists, who could discuss the teens' experiences and responses in a measured objectivity.

But this is one fine documentary.

8/10.

I just watched this through Netflix, based on a recommendation and can't believe I'd never heard of it before. Rather striking and amazing film. When has there ever been a film, (fiction or non) like this one before? I promise you that you had noooooooooo idea that the Amish could behave in this way and that it was acceptable -- A stunning doc! It opened my eyes in many ways. I had no idea that such a rigid, conservative culture could also possess such a wide-open and "liberal" component to their lifestyle. You want to applaud them and deride them almost simultaneously. And the fact that you are capable of holding two such contrarian feelings is a testament to the power of the director, Lucy Walker. She films everything with a steady, knowing hand. I was riveted. Why didn't I know about this movie? When is Ms. Walker making another film?!?