Ben X

Post Reply New Topic

I had the mis/fortune to come across a belgian movie a week ago. Part of me wants to get hold of a copy, the other part of me never wants to lay eyes on it again.
The movie was called Ben X, and is about a teenage aspergers male living in a world of neuro-norms who just dont get it. his mother loves him but fails to realise the extent of the situation. the teachers mean well but are so completely innefective as to make the problem worse. and the bullies, I really dont know what to say about them.
Right from the minute it started, there was an extreme sense of recognition, I had ben pegged as severe aspergers by ten minutes in. and as the movie progressed, the sense of forboding grew, as it became more and more evident that something terrible was going to happen involving ben. the combination of recognition and forboding had me sobbing my eyes out the entire way through but I simply could not stop watching. I can honestly say that that night was the most emotional event of my entire life, and never to be forgotten.

No need for comments or replies, just wanted to share this with someone else who might feel the same.

I saw the movie about 2 years ago. Indeed it is raw and does not sugar coat what happens to many aspies in school. Personally, I would not suggest it to any aspie in High school or those whose emotional scars from their experience in school are still fresh and raw.

Just reading that paragraph, reminded me, of the stuff that I dealt with, in High School. I think that I should wait a few years, before I watch it.

It's a deeply disturbing film, not easy to watch at all - I took about three hours to get to the end as I had to keep going out for a cigarette and a calm down. It works well as an educational movie as it shows the worst of what people with autism, especially teenagers, can be put through; and it just gets relentlessly darker and darker as it goes on, although this makes the ending (which I'm trying not to spoil for anyone) very dawnlike.

I'm glad I watched it, even though it's so upsetting - I was never bullied anywhere near as bad as that and it made me realise I probably 'got off' really very lightly...

I saw it on youtube. They might still have it up. I'm not sure.

Sorry about the thread vamprism, but just finally watched this flick on netflix last. It's been in my queue for a while now and I was dreading to watch it. I know know why.

It was very, very hard to get through. Maybe it was because I recognized the game he was playing in the opening. And while I was never bullied to that degree in school, I recognized all of Ben's issues with myself. I almost couldn't get through the scene in the park. That bit hit a little too close to home. It's one of the main reasons why I don't keep any kind of weapons around, because I know that in the same situation I would without hesitation use one.

I am still a little confused by the movie. At what point did the girl... argh... I can't spoil it. But by the end I was beginning to think that Ben suffered from more than just autism. And more than a little convinced of this during the final scene. Did any of you think this also? I mean Ben is clearly autistic, but there's more to it than just that.

It also makes me wonder more if I would have been diagnosed as kid in school if it had been recognized as such. I remember as a kid everyone saying how different and special I was, and how my outbursts and meltdowns were simply 'accepted' because I was 'hypersensitive'.

Not only was the movie hard enough, but right after it I took my dogs out and one of them that I've had since she was a puppy bit me. It was a one-two punch that pretty much 'end game'd my night.

to answer your unfinished question: in the train station. imo she was there, and then...you know.
i also wondered in the final scene if he suffered from something more than just autism, but it doesn't make the movie worse, just a bit weirder for me.
it was indeed hard to watch, the park scenes were so freaking infuriating i had to pause and make coffee and remind myself that i was now a grown up and safe behind a closed door.
but i loved the movie.

edit : i met my husband on wow.......i found this movie so sad when i realised what actually happened to ben....

I saw it 1 year ago it was a very disturbing experience.

The sense of recognition that you mentioned was brutal on me, I saw it just some months after I knew I have AS, it was like an additional piece of the puzzle explaining my life but in a very hard way.

Same scenes happened to me the same way as the movie, for example some years ago I went to a doctor to check my hearing and I wanted to find something wrong.

Good to know you think the same as me, there's something else with him. This is why I don't know if it worth watching or not, it may confuse many people. It's not easy to make a movie about AS and not give wrong messages, specially when you mix it with something else.

I had to watch it in ten minute segments. This seems a common reaction here. I wonder if this an AS reaction or do NTs react the same way to this film?

I related to Ben but I don't think the movie upset me or I ever caught a sense of foreboding from it. I didn't understand the ending at all. It seemed like a huge misinterpretation and simply weird.

I am watching the movie Ben X right now, I am at the part right after the first class scene, and when the principal talks to the mother and says "let me know what the specialist says, if Ben should continue studying at our school" (I am translating here, I am watching the movie in french). The movie gets upsetting really quickly, but I want to comment on this last sentence; when he said that I thought why isn't he wondering if the 2 other guys should continue their class there????? they are the ones causing the trouble. VERY VERY unfair. And why didn't anyone do something???? the whole class was making fun of him! jerks

Now I will continue watching the movie and getting upset

Shadi

Reading that paragraph, I can relate to my experiences in elementary school (I seemed to have the experiences there that most aspies have in high school. My high school years have so far been good.)

I'll get around to watching it now.

Its really tough to watch I'm at about half now, taking a break for a little while. There was bullies at my school (as probably any school) but they were not as bad as the ones in the movie, they are absolutely horrible

I saw the movie not too long ago & though I didn't like it much, I could definitely relate to Ben in a lot of ways. I did like the ending, though. But a lot of it was confusing & I don't think that's just because it was in another language. I think it could have been put together better.

shadi2, in french? gee, some people are lucky, i had to watch it in dutch...and my dutch sucks a tiny bit...do you happen to have a link to the french one?

haha my dutch is pretty bad also I can't give you a link for the one I was watching, its a DVD, but I checked on the official Ben X website and found this http://www.ocean-films.com/ type Ben X in the search, and then click on the picture, it will take you to a page where it says "telechargement" , I think you have to register tho because I tried and they ask for a password and email.

there is also one on youtube with english subtitles http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEpWeya8 ... re=related