Screengrab Review: “Sons of a Gun”

 

Dysfunctional families need not be related by blood, as this new documentary from Rivkah Beth Medow and Greg O’Toole proves. Larry Bobbitt, a former hostage negotiator with the LAPD, is the surrogate dad for three schizophrenic men, all in their 30s and 40s.  Larry once ran a legit home for the mentally ill in the 1980s, but the IRS took a dim view of his cash-only approach. Now in his 70s, Larry is a barely functional alcoholic who volunteers at a food bank. He also oversees Craig, a former carnival worker and classic rock aficianado, Lance, a shy former athlete and ex-drug addict, and Ubaldo, a divorced veteran of several mental institutions. As the documentary opens, Larry and his charges have just been evicted from their most recent home and have taken up residence in a motel room.

Take the four most mentally stable guys you know and force them into such close quarters, and it won’t be a pretty picture. Add schizophrenia and alcoholism to the mix, and you have the makings of a Jerry Springer episode. Sons of a Gun never plays that way, however.  The filmmakers seem genuinely conflicted about this situation, and their ambivalence seeps through every frame of this compelling, disturbing film. There’s a genuine, familial vibe amongst this quartet, and in the early going, it seems like they’ve found a viable alternative to the sort of sterile group housing where they might otherwise be disposed. But it soon becomes clear this is no sitcom; Larry has a vicious temper when he drinks, which is most of the time, and a few horrific moments of violence force you to re-think the whole set-up.  Surely this is not a healthy situation for anyone concerned…but is there an acceptable alternative or are these men doomed to fall through the increasing cracks in the social safety net?

There are no easy answers in Sons of a Gun, just a compelling story about unique individuals most of us would avert our eyes from if we passed on the street. They’re not so easily ignored in this intimate, compassionate but clear-eyed portrait of life on the fringes.

- Scott Von Doviak