airs Sundays at 9 p.m. But its staff emerges as a caring if overstressed group of people who do what they can to steer the girls in their charge toward a productive life. In the movie, we were able to watch two female offenders in the juvenile justice system. This paradoxical relationship with her parent is evident (Brody & Dwyer, 2016). Megan is 16 and is in Waxter for Assault with a deadly weapon. The disrupted attachment led to a paradoxical relationship with the caregivers in Waxter (Shaffer & Kipp, 2010). The DVD has an interesting commentary by Liz Barbus, whose filmogarphy is also provided. On the other hand, Girl Hood creates an uncomfortable comparison between Shanae and Megan and their relationship with their mothers. Megan is 16 and is in Waxter for Assault with a deadly weapon. How A Violent Teen Who Had Given Up On Life Turned It All Around. Finally, she becomes distraught when her relationship with her mother ends. http://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-nov-14-et-girlhood14-story.html The girls as well as their moms were open and seemed to not hold back their emotions for the camera, with Megan a virtual basket case of excitability and the childish Shanae changing for the better as she matures. She gave birth to a daughter and moved to North Carolina in an effort to start anew. Confronted with her crime, Shanae is strangely detached and has little memory of the incident. At 17, she was living in her own apartment in a druggie neighborhood. Her cousin has to console her. Often it's not enough. recently followed up with Megan to see what had happened after the show. She is briefly reunited with her mother but cannot forgive her for not being there when she needed her most. Today, the Baltimore native is living in North Carolina and acknowledges that she wasn't in a good place during her "Oprah Show" appearance. She angrily lashes out at the girl, but shows no remorse when she finds out that she died. At 14, she was hit by a stray bullet during a gunfight. The 16-year-old Shanae was placed in the Florence Crittenton Group home and the slightly older Megan was rewarded for trying to run away by gaining her official freedom. The extent of Garbus access to the girls while in detention is remarkable (she states that she eventually had keys to the inside of the Waxter facility because the staff got tired of her and her crews constant requests to get into different rooms). How is Megan Jensen from Girlhood doing I just saw the film and was really. murdering another girl after the two got into an argument. She had lived in an environment that was full of disruption. The title Girlhood splits in two on the opening credits, with "girl" and "hood" on separate lines. Girlhood Directed by Liz Garbus Documentary, Crime Not Rated 1h 22m By Stephen Holden Oct. 29, 2003 Liz Garbus's hard-headed documentary film ''Girlhood'' is prefaced with an unsettling. Girlhood | Film Review | Spirituality & Practice That is not to say that traumatic experience, crime or drug abuse are good, but that in these stories they exist and persist, even when the girls triumph and go to prom or spend time with family. Anyone can read what you share. Girlhood[Motion Picture]. 005BroylesDocumentary.docx - EDPY 303.005 Dr. Armstrong 08 New York: Psychology Press. These girls are the subjects of Liz Garbus' documentary, Girlhood. Megan admits that when she leaves Waxter she will only be going back to another foster home. At Waxter, Megans need for attention and affection, her vulnerablity, are on display for everyone to see. When we meet Megan at Waxter it is clear that she is something of a troublemaker but probably more out of boredom than any malice (Garbus in her DVD commentary says that Megan is actually a very respectful young woman and that one of her main criticism of the Waxter Facility is that there is not really much structured activities for the inmates.). Megan, a pretty girl with a devilish gleam in her eye, tries to get by on charm, but she doesn't have Shanae's focus. The film opens with the title card, In the United States, during the last decade, the number of young girls committing violent crimes has more than doubled. I dont think its a right-wing conclusion to say that everyone needs family and that strong families raise strong, healthy, happy children who can grow up to be adults who can contribute positively to our society. ET on OWN. The film is told from the girls subjective viewpoint and plays as a coming of age story. girlhood documentary - Next Step Online Shanae even overcomes the death of her mom three months later from a heart attack and goes on to graduate from a public high school and enroll in a community college. FILM; A Filmmaker Who Chooses to Live Behind Bars It indicates that she is wary of strangers (Garbus, 2003). 4 Pages. Their stories are depicted in the 2003 documentary Girlhood. She's Got Moxie: Liz Garbus on "Girlhood" and Lives - IndieWire a. Shanae is in the juvenile facility for stabbing a friend to death in a fight. This documentary really touched me and made me so much more grateful for my environment and support. After Megan and her mother have falling out and are no longer speaking, the film again shifts focus to Shanae, who has now just lost her mother to heart failure. We also met Megan, who, unlike Shanae, was not at the . Megan Jensen had a difficult childhood. But one is left wondering how this silly girl took it upon herself to attack another young woman with a box cutter (the main reason why she is locked up). As Oprah questioned Megan about her current situation and plans for the future, the teen grew visibly agitated. http://sites.google.com/view/ehdwjwbxfu/linkedlist-member-modification-c, Your email address will not be published. Second, Shanae develops a positive outlook. In the documentary Girlhood, Liz Garbus follows two young women who have encountered numerous misfortunes in the past that led them to implement their violent offences. With the help of her mother, Shanae can graduate from high school. New York: Cengage Learning. She stays briefly at another foster home before running away to live with friends and eventually by herself in the treacherous East Baltimore neighborhood where she got into trouble. Girlhood: The Theories Of Aggression And Violence | Studymode Shanae Owens and Megan Jensen in girlhood. Megan, a pretty girl with a devilish gleam in her eye, tries to get by on charm, but she doesn't have Shanae's focus. REVIEW: GIRLHOOD Documentary On Netflix - WordPress.com Both of the girls have been in the system for years, Megan has been in and out of juvenile detention centers and foster homes for years and is . Dennis Schwartz: Ozus World Movie Reviews, Copyright 2023 - Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews. The girls have traumatic experiences that affect their relationship with others. Megan Terry, Feminist Playwright and Rock Musical Innovator, Dies at 90 Liz Garbus, who was nominated for an Academy Award in 1999 for The Farm: Angola, USA, shoots in her latest an unflinching cinema verite documentary about two teenager girls who committed violent crimes and are now incarcerated at Marylands Waxter Juvenile Facility. Ecological Framework Garbus in her commentary points out that Shanae does not believe that the gang rape should be seen as some sort of excuse for her murdering her friend. Press ESC to cancel. 5 Pages. After watching the documentary, it is easy to see that Megans environment has contributed greatly to her childhood and ultimately her adult life. The relationship between staff and the young girls is also essential to how the girls grow and move forward with their lives. Shanae is 14 and has served two years at Waxter for the murder of her friend, a crime she committed when she as only 12 years old. She portrays this by her apprehensive response that she gives to her parent. That was 11 years ago. Begin typing your search term above and press enter to search. As much of my work is with teenage girls in high school, this issue is both personally and professionally relevant to me, however, I often wonder if girls are really becoming more violent or if our society is just admitting something that has always gone on but we didnt know how to label because of our stereotypical image of girls and women as somehow less aggressive than men. Miriam Kruishoop (Greencard Warriors) has signed on to write and direct Hood Girls, a narrative feature based on the life stories of the two subjects of Liz Garbus 2003 documentary Girlhood. Girlhood (2003) - Plot Summary - IMDb In the beginning, Shanae is not remorseful for committing murder (Garbus, 2003). The documentary "Girlhood" follows the lives of two girls, Shanae and Megan, from 1999-2002, during and shortly after their release from Waxter Juvenile Facility in Maryland. Just last week Waxter made headline news in Maryland after having been labeled by one childrens rights advocate as a house of horrors. At Waxter, girls like Shanae who have been sentenced for crimes, girls who would make mincemeat of the fillies in Thirteen, are placed alongside those who, as one news story put it, have not been found guilty of anything yet. Except, perhaps, being born poor and grievously disadvantaged. AQA Psychology: AS and A-level Year 1. "I didn't know how to love anybody or to depend on people because I never had anyone stable enough in my life to actually show me that kind of love and compassion.". This is where politics comes in and things get ugly. At twelve years old Shanae was involved in a fight that ended with Shanae stabbing and killing a young girl. "Excuse me," she said. Girlhood Worksheet Please complete this worksheet based on the film Girlhood. Similarly, she seems to suffer from ambivalent attachment because she is always distressed when she is unable to receive affirmations from her mother. Shanae shows certain resilience characteristics that help her reform her life. Make sure to answer each of the questions as thoroughly as possible. No matter how optimistic I am, when I am reaching out to young women, I need to understand different backgrounds. Volatile, articulate and desperately needy, Megan seethes with bitterness at having been abandoned by her mother, Vernessa, a heroin addict and prostitute, who has spent many years in prison. Throughout the film, we are sympathetic to the challenges of Shanae and Megans girlhoods, but cannot substantively grasp, through the documentary, the unresolved nature of their status, as girls in a system that seeks to destroy not just girlhood, but life beyond girlhood too. Megan's mother was a drug-addled prostitute, and after being placed in, and escaping from, nearly a dozen foster homes, Megan committed a violent crime. Oprah later told her she was the first person she had interviewed who had ever walked out on her. However, her mother is a struggling drug addict who is unable to offer the care and support that she required. As she grows up, she realizes that she cannot rely on anyone and starts to take better care or herself. Shanae Owens and Megan Jensen in girlhood. Its no wonder. Copyright Disclaimer under section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, t. Girlhood Movie Analysis. "I started using cocaine, I was strung out on drugs -- bad. While Shanae, the victim of a horrendous violent crime herself as a child, has difficulty coming to grips with the murder she's committed, she's clearly an intelligent, charismatic, and, most importantly, motivated girl. But Garbus way of humanizing, in some instances, obfuscates the complexity of struggle, survival and the bad from the girls girlhood. The film then narrows its focus to concentrate on the lives of two teenagers, Shanae Owens and Megan Jensen, both incarcerated for assault at the Waxter Juvenile Facility in Baltimore. In contrast to Shanae, who has a great deal of family love and support, Megan only receives letters from her mother sporadically, and in one scene in the film desperately wants to call her grandmother to see if she is going to visit her. (2003). Your email address will not be published. This confused young girl ran away from ten foster homes and wound up attacking another . Girlhood (2003) - IMDb You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Brody, R., & Dwyer, D. (2016). she has come a long way from this documentry i love and am so proud of my sistrr. [Write my essay for me? Get help here.]. 1103 Words. By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. She receives more family support than Megan is, but she does not seem to reciprocate it at the beginning of the film. As you watch it, you wish the film would fill in more of each girl's background. The juvenile justice system serves her well, because she's deeply involved in forging her own path. What factors do you think played a part in . Garbus interest in and empathy for her subjects and, more importantly, the way in which she relays their girlhood, makes for an entertaining and emotional documentary, but perhaps an incomplete one. One characteristic of resilience that Megan portrays is her perseverance. The early life trauma that these girls experienced impacted . This difference in their experiences seems to be related to their familial relationships. Follows two female inmates - victims of horrific violence and tragedy - who are serving time in a Maryland juvenile detention center.Documentary chronicling America's justice system. But in [Garbus] attempt to give their lives a shape that the girls themselves seem to resist, this talented filmmaker has done both herself and them a disservice.. Documentary Review: girlhood by Liz Garbus | The Woyingi Blog By age 10, she had been committed to two psychiatric hospitals and diagnosed as manic-depressive. At the beginning of the documentary, Shanae and Megan are 14 and 16, serving time for murder and assault, respectively. Shanae's reentry into society was easy, and she does not seem to be struggling in any way. Part of HuffPost News. She demonstrates that you can support and love your child while not making excuses for them. Copyright 2006 - 2023 by CIStems, Inc., d.b.a. At the beginning of the documentary, Shanae and Megan are 14 and 16, serving time for murder and assault, respectively. Impact of Trauma The third is her reluctance to become close with others. Required fields are marked *. 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. I believe that you cant examine this increasing youth crime problem among girls without studying how the capitalist system effects social conditions. I think this is key to Shanaes eventual success. She specializes in academic writing, copywriting, business plans and resumes. She has lived in foster homes most of her life, as her white mother Vernessa is a drug addict and a prostitute who served a long stretch in jail and is currently once again serving time in the Baltimore Detention Center. A riveting documentary about two young offenders serving time in a Baltimore juvenile facility and their struggles over a three-year period to forge a new life for themselves against formidable odds. The documentary, indeed, treats girlhood as its subject a phase of life distinct from womanhood, childhood or any other experience. Megan flounders around for a while and is eventually sent to another foster home, which doesn't work out. Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations. See production, box office & company info. ''Girlhood, which was shot in 16 millimeter, is a bare-bones affair, as spare as the juvenile institution in which much of it was filmed. The protagonists are Shanae Owens and Megan Jensen. In this field, deadlines are super important. Find help here.]. The first example is how wary she is of strangers (Eysenck, 2015). Follows two female inmates - victims of horrific violence and tragedy - who are serving time in a Maryland juvenile detention center. FILM REVIEW; A Documentary Illuminates Young Lives at the Crossroads of Both girls are likable, smart young women struggling to overcome traumatic backgrounds. Megan also shows that she has self-efficacy. She got into a knife fight at 11 with her girlfriend and fatally stabbed her three times. That roster includes ''The Farm: Angola, U.S.A,'' an acclaimed film about the largest maximum-security prison in the United States, and ''The Execution of Wanda Jean,'' a sympathetic portrait of the first black woman executed in America in the last 50 years. GIRLHOOD - Dennis Schwartz Reviews This film is not rated. Shanae was ten years old when she was gang-raped by five boys. With the girls going nowhere at Waxter, they were given a new lease on life by changing facilities. Female Teenage BFF Inmates From Liz Garbus' Doc 'Girlhood' to Get Movie Additionally, the film has also been criticized for ignoring the workers at Waxter. Even though she does not get the chance to further her education, she avoids returning to a life of crime (Garbus, 2003). Interviews. The Girlhood documentary highlights the plight of girls in juvenile centers with some psychological disorders. [Need anessay writing service? Garbus explains that she encountered the contradictions of Shanae and Megans girlhoods early on; she mentions that she was struck by [Shanaes] little girl-ness, her innocence, but this was complicated by what she learned about the violence of her crime. That is to say, Garbus sees crime and girlhood as opposite experiences. Obviously, the director, Liz Garbus, wants to achieve in a documentary the power and. Footage of the two girls is then followed along with more title cards that give insight into the crimes they have committed. Shanae moves into a lower security halfway house because her mother does not feel ready to take her back home. This paper provides a social psychological review of Megan and Shanae from an ecological point of view as well as an attachment perspective. . I dont think girls are really less aggressive than boys, nor do I think we should somehow pathologize aggressive and violent behaviour by girls but see it as a given among boys. At first, Shanae shows no remorse over killing another human being, but gradually she takes a hard look at what she did and is sorry. As a left-wing filmmaker, she worried that this appeared to be some sort of right-wing Family Values advocate conclusion. Lock 'em up and keep them off the streets is the familiar cry. Shanae was reintegrated well by her . The domain that best explains Megans attachment issues is the ambivalent/resistant attachment. After her release, 19-year-old Megan appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" alongside another troubled teen, Shanae. Excerpt from Essay : Girlhood juvenile delinquents, Shanae Megan, Waxter Juvenile Facility Maryland. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/girlhood-subjects-get-narrative-feature-829762 In the film's most compelling scenes Megan confronts Vernessa, who has been released from prison and who professes her love and determination to be an anchor for her daughter. Life on the streets in a community where drugs are readily available offers her plenty of opportunities to repeat the same mistakes. Even though there is an intense argument, after she tells her mother never to talk to her again, she has a nervous breakdown (Garbus, 2003). Is the Megan inside Waxter the same Megan outside Waxter? Antoinette does her best in extremely difficult circumstances. In Garbus film, Shanae and Megans girlhood set up a dichotomy: girlhood is good, everything else threatening, extraneous and intrusive, instead of part of the story of girlhood itself. Garbus encountered the girls at the Waxter Juvenile Facility in Baltimore while making a television documentary about the boys incarcerated there. To think that one out of two might have straightened out her life, is not saying that the system works. In an interview with NPR, the films director, Liz Garbus, admits that Girlhood was originally a documentary about incarcerated boys, but the girls stories were more interesting to her.

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