REVIEWS AND ARTICLES
Reviews:
“Remarkable…a chronicle of ordinary life that is partly a scrapbook, partly a memoir and, most movingly, an essay on the passage of time and the mysterious connection between parents and children.”
– A. O. Scott, New York Times
“Intimate, funny, deeply affecting; The Kids Grow Up exemplifies personal filmmaking at its most truthful and absorbing. It’s wonderful.”
– Ann Hornaday, Washington Post
“Nakedly personal…profoundly universal.”
– Eric Hynes, The Village Voice
“Powerful…funny…irresistible.”
– Andrew O’Hehir, Salon.com
“Intimate and deeply moving.”
– Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine
“Resonant and poignant…’Kids’ strikes more than a few deep chords.”
– Sheri Linden, Los Angeles Times
“One of the best non-fiction films of the year.”
– John P. McCarthy, Boxoffice Magazine
“Intimate…distinct…complicated and surprising.”
– Cynthia Fuchs, PopMatters
“…Even though the strongest response to “The Kids Grow Up” will likely come from fathers, or daughters, who’ve found themselves in its particular circumstances, the director — via a nakedly honest examination of what is essentially helpless love — taps into something that transcends generation, or gender.”
– John Anderson, Variety
“Pitch-perfect and frequently comic.”
– Anne S. Lewis, The Austin Chronicle
“What [Block] has been able to do so brilliantly with both “51 Birch Street” and “The Kids Grow Up” is take personal subject matter and present it in a manner that is dramatic and universal.”
– Seth Shire, The Unpaid Film Critic
Articles:
New York Times (Steve Reddicliffe)
“The idea of ‘letting go of your kids’ is something that every mother and father must deal with.”
Washington Post (Ann Hornaday)
“As ‘The Kids Grow Up’ toggles gracefully between images of Lucy as an enchanting toddler and those of an equally beguiling, self-possessed young woman, the film indelibly captures the fishbowl life of a generation that came of age in front of camera.”
The Village Voice (Anthony Kaufman)
“Block’s ability to take a step back from his most personal subject matter may be the secret to his films’ successes.”
The Wall Street Journal (Nicolas Rapold)
“The story this time is a familiar one, which is precisely why it holds interest…Mr. Block soul-searches his way through a parental rite of passage.”
New York Daily News (Joe Neumaier)
“Like Block’s previous film, the acclaimed “51 Birch Street,” about his parents’ marriage, “The Kids Grow Up” delivers a bittersweet punch that draws from the director’s own realization of a universal emotional truth. This time, however, he’s looking forward as much as looking back.”
indieWIRE (Daniel Loria)
“Block intercuts the elliptical flashbacks with contemporary footage of Lucy’s life, roaming candidly through her final moments at home with an anxious, bittersweet tenderness. [His] features are infused with a powerful, at times emotionally profound nostalgia intrinsic to these cinematic time capsules.”
Tribeca Film (Adam Schartoff)
“Doug Block is a distinct type of documentary filmmaker–the subjects in his last few films have been the closest in his life: his family.”
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