Nov 28, 2016

CNN to Air James Ray Documentary

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

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Set your DVRs, folks. CNN will air Enlighten Us, the James Ray documentary of dubious quality I wrote about here. The details can be found on the CNN website.

ENLIGHTEN US: The Rise and Fall of James Arthur Ray, directed by Jenny Carchman, will premiere Thursday, Dec. 01 at 9:00pm and 11:00pm Eastern on CNN/U.S., with limited commercial interruption, the network announced today.  ENLIGHTEN US made its world debut at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival in New York City in April and also screened at Telluride Mountainfilm in Colorado and Tallgrass Film Festival in Kansas.

The film explores the story of the motivational speaker’s meteoric rise, fall, and attempt to return to the $11 billion personal growth industry following his conviction for negligent homicide in the deaths of three of Ray’s clients at one of his events.  The film explores the origins of the self-help industry, what followers of the industry are looking for, who is offering answers to those followers, and why some are willing to risk so much for that guidance.

In other news, Ray doesn't want to be a convicted felon anymore. Connie Joy has learned that he is petitioning the court to set aside the verdict that put him in prison briefly, for the small matter of killing three people.

13 comments:

  1. "he is petitioning the court to set aside the verdict that put him in prison briefly, for the small matter of killing three people"

    a new low for the 'self help' business.

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  2. It looks like this has been pushed back 'til Saturday, no doubt because of Trumph's ultra creepy rally. When narcissistic sociopaths preempt narcissistic sociopaths.

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  3. have you seen his new youtube videos? the guy looks like he's drowning in his own denial - an insane person talking to themselves. makes my skin crawl.

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    1. I haven't in a while. I should take a look and see what he's up to. I just hate to give his website the views. The last few things I've seen have me wondering if he's ill. He seems, um, off.

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  4. did this air the other day? can't find any after-the-fact reviews online. just one pre-air.

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    1. It aired. I watched it. My review is on the way.

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    2. thanks. i want to watch it myself at some point but just watched a bbc documentary on an Australian cult last week and couldn't face another one so soon.

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  5. not sure if you will be able to access it from where you are.

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b084fs2p

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    1. Oh god, the Family, aka., Children of God. I watched another doco, an older one on Netflix. Very hard to take. That is some sick shit.

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    2. Yes I found this documentary was even harder to take in parts than Prophet's Prey. There's a point where the inhumanity passes some kind of sound barrier that it becomes hard to put any kind of sensible words to.

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    3. I haven't seen this one. I may try to find the time and the stomach for it. If it's anything like the one I saw, and there've several on this particular cult, it's the total breakdown of sexual boundaries that is really hard to take. Those poor children. Did this have the footage of little, little children learning to dance like, um, strippers? Because I'm still not over that.

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    4. No that footage is not in this one. It was upsetting to me I think because so much of the effect is in what is not conveyed directly. In the film you see footage from the time but then you see the children as adults and the detectives who worked on the case and the toll its taken on their spirits - its etched into them in a way that is viscerally affecting above and beyond anything they say. And juxtaposing this is the footage of a single unaffected, sickly smiling, moral vacuum at its centre. And the contrast is so jarring that even the light and redemption that is won out for some in the end seems heart breakingly fragile. If you can face it I would be interested to hear your reaction because this is one i found hard to put in a neat box of words at the end.

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