The Up Series - Seven Up/Seven Plus Seven Up/21 Up/28 Up/35 Up/42 Up

In 1964, inspired by the Jesuit maxim, "Give Me the Child Until He Is Seven and I Will Show You the Man", Michael Apted seeked out 14 7-year old children and interviewed them. The result was Seven Up, a 40-minute documentary that simply showed the children and their outlooks on life, school, growing up, their futures, love and class distinctions, among many other things. 7 years later, Apted and co. tracked down the children at 14 and interviewed them again, showing how their lives had changed. Apted did the same thing every 7 years, the last time when they were all 42. The result is a series of fascinating documentaries.

The most interesting aspect of the films, for me, is seeing the people grow up. You're able to get a glimpse into the minds and lives of these people, all throughout their lives. You get to live vicariously as they experience their ups and downs, their failures and victories. At 7, everyone acts like a child. At 14, they all seem to be growing up, still very immature and unsure of themselves. At 21, they're on the cusp of adulthood and act as if they know everything. At 28, they're mostly all matured, with full families of their own and careers. At 35 and 42, we see them trying to adjust to these ages, coping with the losses of their parents, their own children growing up, marital difficulties, problems at work. Quite a long way from the kids we knew at 7.

Naturally, the viewer will identify more clearly with some subjects more than others. They'll form their own opinions on the people, based on their own personal preferences and tastes. Yet, over time, as people change and mature, the people themselves grow, and the viewer might find themself really feeling a kinship with those who they disliked when they were children.

The only complaint I have with the series is that, just to remind the viewers who everybody is, (most of whom were seeing the films 7 years apart) the same clips get repeated quite a lot, which can try the patience of those viewing the films in succession. Also, I felt that, in the last few films, the pace really slowed down, as the subjects had a lot more to talk about and rant about. People dropped out of the project, and the running times grew, so everyone has a lot more to say, and sometimes they can get a little long-winded

Despite its few faults, the Up Series is a great experiment in film. It's incredibly fascinating, and you really feel as if you've taken part in the lives of the people profiled. I hope that the next film, 49 Up, gets a decent release in America, because I'd love to see what everyone's been up to.