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All This Panic

Name: All This Panic
Director: Tom Betterton, Jenny Gage
Released: 2017
Duration: 79 min

Representation Score

9.0/10

Excellent

2017

TV-14

Director

Tom Betterton, Jenny Gage

Runtime

79 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

All This Panic is a sophisticated exploration of identity formation that uses vérité techniques to challenge traditional developmental stories. By focusing on high-anxiety demographics, the film replaces structured moral lessons with a nuanced, multi-layered look at contemporary youth. The documentary succeeds in offering an intimate glimpse into the transition from childhood to adulthood. It avoids traditional narrative structures, instead prioritizing the subjective experiences of its subjects to create a vivid, unscripted portrayal of Brooklyn life. While the film excels in psychological depth and empowering women, its multi-layered analysis is sometimes limited by its intense focus on individual psychological portraits.

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Category Breakdown

Does All This Panic have LGBTQ+ representation?

Good

The film breaks away from the assumption that everyone is straight or cisgender by highlighting various sexual orientations and gender identities. These identities are shown as fundamental to the characters' sense of self, rather than just being used as minor plot points.

How does All This Panic portray gender?

Good

By emphasizing the inner lives of teenage girls, the film challenges the typical male perspective. It elevates the role of women by focusing on their psychological complexities and the social pressures they face.

How racially and ethnically diverse is All This Panic?

Good

The subjects represent a diverse range of backgrounds that mirror the current Brooklyn community. This provides a varied view of youth culture, although the depth of characters who reflect more than one aspect of diversity is somewhat limited due to the focus on individual portraits.

How does All This Panic represent religion and culture?

Good

The narrative highlights the fragmented nature of identity and moral ambiguity in a digital age. It dismantles traditional markers of adulthood, presenting the transition through psychological instability rather than an idealized progression.

Does All This Panic include disability representation?

Good

The documentary offers insights into invisible disabilities, particularly neurodivergence and mental health issues. It portrays these challenges as complex human experiences rather than just clinical observations or clichés.

Present on Screen

Challenges the male perspective by emphasizing the psychological complexities and empowerment of teenage girls.
Highlights LGBTQ+ identities as essential components of selfhood rather than superficial plot devices.
Offers a nuanced look at neurodivergence and mental health as complex human experiences.

Limited or Absent

The focus on individual psychological portraits limits the depth of multi-layered analysis.
The depiction of racial and ethnic diversity, while natural, lacks deeper systemic exploration.

Official Synopsis

Shot over a three-year period with unparalleled intimacy and access, ALL THIS PANIC is a feature length documentary that takes an intimate look at the interior lives of a group of teenage girls as they come of age in Brooklyn. A potent mix of vivid portraiture and vérité, we follow the girls as they navigate the ephemeral and fleeting transition between childhood and adulthood.

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