Bad Vegan. Another (largely entertaining) eye-opening scammer documentary

https://youtu.be/4nTf7iViYUI

I am beginning to think that there are perhaps too many of these sort of documentaries now - there is limited interest in seeing the many ways people can be taken advantage of - and in the end, the most interesting thing about them is seeing how they have come to terms (or not) with what they have done or has been done to them.

This one however was a bit better as all the parties involved seemed to have a measured and intelligent view of what had happened to them and why -and the central character, in an extensive post-prison interview did seem to have a greater degree of self-awareness although she is still clearly trying to fully process and come ti terms with everything. However, the final clip - a conversation between her and her scammer-husband was intriguing as it suggested she still had some degree of feeling for him - and the journalist who explored the whole story (and presumably upon whose article(s) the film was based had an interesting final few thoughts about who might possibly, intially at least, have been scamming whom…

But the darkest side of it was the degree of coercive control that was able to be exercised on an apparently very smart and savvy woman - although the belief in the possibility of her dog’s immortality did make that assessment of her at that time a little tricky - but then if she was so totally wrapped up in the relationship, presumably this did not seem too implausible - and it seems she had a predisposition to the New Age mystical malarkey anyway and was perhaps, a fruit waiting to be plucked.

Disappointing that there were so many documentary clichés in the film though - the slow walking away with portentous voice-over/mournful music. Come on, that’s been done to death guys…

The Ponds. Sweet, often moving but not sentimental documentary about the year-round swimmers on Hampstead Heath pools

Hannah Gadsby; Nanette. Superbly powerful and original