Every Saturday night on WrongPlanet.net, a discussion will ensue about a selected autism-related film. Please, take care to avoid spoilers (or, at least, flag them) to prevent potential viewers from learning too much about the story in advance of their viewing. Tonight’s selected film is:
Dad’s in Heaven with Nixon (86 minutes), a 2010 American documentary film written and directed by Tom Murray. Murray presents the history of the Murray family and especially of Tom’s brother, Chris Murray, a man with autism whose paintings of cityscapes have garnered widespread praise, and are sold a New York City gallery. The film follows Chris’s relationship with his family and his life as a janitor and a supermarket stock boy. The film’s title refers to Chris’s belief that his late father, who loathed Richard Nixon, is now friends in heaven with the former president. The DVD version of the film was released in 2010. Scenes from the film are available for viewing on YouTube under the search term Dad’s in Heaven with Nixon.
Presented in contemporaneous scenes from 1960s home movies as well as interviews with family members, the film explores the narrative of a family history with its wealth, its problems and how one member with autism refocuses the family’s appreciation of love and life.
If you have viewed this film, what are your opinions about it?
18 Jun 2016, 10:51 am
