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Going Home

Name: Going Home
Director: Adolfas Mekas, Pola Chapelle
Released: 1972
Duration: 61 min

Representation Score

7.6/10

Good

1972

Director

Adolfas Mekas, Pola Chapelle

Runtime

61 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

Going Home functions primarily as an experimental home movie rather than a work of overt social advocacy. Its value lies in its formal disruption of mainstream documentary norms and its emphasis on personal, non-linear storytelling. The film succeeds in centering ethnic identity through its focus on Lithuanian heritage. By documenting a journey to ancestral roots, it provides a lens that moves away from standardized Western perspectives. However, the work lacks explicit representation regarding disability and LGBTQ+ identities. While the collaborative direction offers a progressive model for gendered leadership, the film's impact is more formal than thematic.

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Category Breakdown

Does Going Home have LGBTQ+ representation?

Fair

The film does not explicitly depict LGBTQ+ identities or non-straight relationships. However, its roots in the 1970s avant-garde movement suggest a history of challenging traditional assumptions about sexuality.

How does Going Home portray gender?

Fair

The film features a collaborative directorial credit between Adolfas Mekas and Pola Chapelle, which disrupts the traditional 'sole auteur' model. This shared leadership provides Chapelle with a significant role in the filmmaking process.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Going Home?

Good

The film focuses on travels to Lithuania and Europe, centering a non-Anglo-Saxon perspective. This emphasis on ancestral roots elevates a specific ethnic narrative away from Western-centric Hollywood standards.

How does Going Home represent religion and culture?

Fair

The documentary explores heritage and geography from a personal perspective. It prioritizes individual and ancestral connections over a singular, institutionalized worldview or established Western structures.

Does Going Home include disability representation?

Fair

There is no documented evidence regarding the portrayal of physical or neurodivergent disabilities. The film lacks visible representation or specific narrative engagement with disability.

Present on Screen

The collaborative direction between Mekas and Chapelle challenges traditional patriarchal filmmaking hierarchies.
The focus on Lithuanian heritage provides a non-Western-centric perspective on travel and identity.
The avant-garde style disrupts mainstream cinematic structures and conventional narrative norms.

Limited or Absent

The film lacks visible representation or narrative engagement with physical or neurodivergent disabilities.
There is no explicit evidence regarding the depiction of LGBTQ+ identities or gender expressions.
The documentary lacks overt thematic messaging regarding specific social or political advocacy.

Official Synopsis

A home movie by Adolfas Mekas and wife Pola Chapelle on their travels to Lithuania and Europe. It was filmed concurrently with the more highly regarded “Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania” by Jonas Mekas, brother to Adolfas.

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