Despite incredible reviews and celebrity endorsements — there are some who are accusing the controversial documentary, Bully, of being one-sided.
Blogger Emily Bazelon says crucial parts of Bully are “utterly one-sided” and “factually questionable.” In particular, she takes issue with the story about Tyler Long, one of the doc’s featured subjects.
According to the doc, Tyler killed himself when he was 17-years-old because he was a victim of bullying. But Bazelon claims that:
“Tyler also suffered from ADHD, bipolar disorder, and Asperger’s syndrome; additionally, his girlfriend broke up with him a few weeks before his suicide.”
By not mentioning them these facts, Bazelon says, that Bully’s creators oversimplified and distorted the facts to create a smoother narrative.
The Doc’s producer has responded to these allegations, saying:
“Emily Bazelon’s central concern about Bully is that the movie presents a one-sided and incomplete version of the events leading up to the suicide of Tyler Long. The movie includes no mention of the mental health issues Tyler faced, and it fails to note that the school district disputes the Long family’s account of the causal role bullying played his death. The school district’s legal papers tell us that Tyler was diagnosed with ADHD, bipolar disorder, and Asperger’s when he was in sixth grade, and while the family’s response brief objects to the bipolar diagnosis as “immaterial,” it does not factually challenge it. Perhaps more important for this conversation, no one disputes that Tyler was on the autism spectrum, and considerable research links Asperger’s and autism to an elevated risk of suicide.”
So, there are lots of reasons why someone commits suicide.
But, no one can dispute that bullying is one of the factors that led to the tragic end of Tyler’s short life.
Bully is currently showing in five theaters in NYC and El Lay; TWC plans to expand that number to up to 150 theaters in the next few weeks.
[image via Bully]