Being from Connecticut and knowing the events that unfolded in Newtown, I anticipated that Kim Snyder’s film would be difficult to watch. But like so many of the best documentaries, being hard to watch means it was all the more thoughtful, powerful, and above all, necessary. I have often been simply considering that the best documentarians are those who best seek out and bring to light the unbiased truth. Kim Snyder taught me that the best documentarians also require yet another intangible thing: courage. The best documentarians try to not only educate the world but to teach people bravery, to teach people morals and what should or should not be done in specific situations.
This can happen through three ways that directly come to mind. First, the documentarian educates through the subject of the film. What will the viewer directly learn? This includes information: the story, the actual events that unfolded, names involved, dates that things occurred. The second method of viewer education is less direct, and beautifully done by Snyder: she teaches through what she allows to be seen on screen. Her conscious choices artistically and ethically (sometimes overlapping) teach the viewer how to handle certain situations. Of course, this is technically debatable and cannot always be known; while I love and praise the way Snyder made her film, others may say she did not handle both art and ethics as well as she could have. I think, however, that she set an example for how to approach telling these types of stories. Thirdly, the viewer is taught through content once again but less obviously than in terms of just the story. Yes, you learned the facts already, but a good documentarian will teach through their film why the issue in the film is right/wrong/important/biased/etc. In the case of Newtown, for instance, Snyder teaches people about gun control.
I would like to elaborate on one point specifically: ethics. As I sat down for the film, I was apprehensive about how Snyder could possibly have handled ethics well. How can an outsider, someone not from Newtown, possibly just invade and make a film about such a sensitive issue? As I watched the film, however, I quickly understood and my wonder for Snyder skyrocketed. She was absolutely incredible- she was sensitive to the people of Newtown, to the families of these children, and made it so clear to them that she wanted to help. It truly amazes me that she was so wonderfully capable and brilliant.