On Beamafilm: Freakonomics

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“Freakonomics” – the documentary – is a collection of four short films each directed by award-winning documentary makers: Morgan Spurlock, Alex Gibney, Rachel Grady, Eugene Jarecki, Seth Gordon and Heidi Ewing. Each short documentary explores a different subject from the “Freakanomics” book through interviews, experiments and animation. A compelling introdcution by Levitt and Dubner addresses the principles and ideas that had influenced the study. While it may all sound as dry as paint –this film is colourful, engaging and above all, it challenges us to think about the hidden aspects of our everyday lives. How does a baby’s name influence its personality and its prospects as an adult? How can sports as deeply rooted in spirituality and honour as sumo wrestling be corrupted? Is there a correlation between abortion and lowering crime rates? Can you bribe children to learn? It is fascinating that the answers to these questions are not what you’d expect – and that’s one of the great things about “Freakonomics”. When presented with two reasonable ideas about the same subject, it’s easy to understand that one may influence the other. Of course a baby’s name influences how they grow up – if you call a child “Temptress” and she becomes a juvenile criminal, what can you expect? But in the world of Freakonomics, it’s revealed that the ‘obvious’ answer, the simple assumption, is rarely the right one. It’s hard to think the same way about things again. Watch 'Freakonomics' on Beamafilm now!