The Amish: Shunned

This documentary is about folks who have left the Amish and who have, as a result, become shunned. In other words, now that they no longer follow their church's teachings, their families act as if they are dead! The show consists of interviews with several ex- Amish* and many of the interviews are done without showing the actual person who you hear talking (due, most likely, because Amish believe it's wrong to be filmed).

This might just be one of the toughest episodes of "The American Experience" to watch. I've seen many dozen episodes and cannot recall one like this one. The problem is that the show is the most somber and stark one they have made...and it seems to go on and on and on (it's much longer than the 60 minutes listed on IMDb). Much of this is due to the subject matter and how depressed many of these ex-Amish seem. But I also think some life could have been infused into the show by inserting more incidental music, shortening many of the interviews and THINKING about how the viewer will be receiving the show and tailoring the show more to a LIVING audience!

Generally, I find myself giving the average "American Experience" show a score of 8 or 9....I love them. But this one is just too poorly made to make it all that enjoyable or useful. A dull and amazingly uninvolving presentation. Too bad, as I noticed much of the show was shot very close to my house--in Sarasota Florida.

*The term Amish is confusing as it can either refer to the Quakers (members of the Society of Friends) or Mennonites. In general, the Mennonites are less strict and are much less likely to shun anyone. I wish the show had made this more clear, as Mennonites get a bit of a black eye with this show.