Athlete A (2020)

Athlete A (2020)

PG-13

netflix

The documentary event of the year

8.4

Movie

United States of America
English
Documentary
2020
BONNI COHEN, FEMALE DIRECTOR
Géza Poszar, Gina Nichols, Jen Sey
104 min

What it's about

Follow the Indianapolis Star reporters that broke the story about USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar's abuse and hear from gymnasts.

The take

This groundbreaking documentary follows the USA Olympics sexual abuse case that made headlines in 2015. Through interviews with Olympians, their families, and investigative reporters, it’s also a documentary on the overall culture of abuse in gymnastics: sexual, physical, and emotional.

In one scene from the 1996 Olympics, gold medalist Kerri Strug has to run, vault, and land - all with a severe foot injury that was covered up by her coaches. She does this twice, limping between attempts and crawling off the mat on the second, crying. Meanwhile, her family, her coaches, the spectators - the World - is celebrating.

When she’s carried off, it’s Larry Nassar, the pedophile at the center of the documentary, who carries her.

Athlete A is groundbreaking exactly because it illustrates that the problem is not only with one doctor, or the 54 coaches who were also found guilty of sexual abuse, or the morally bankrupt leadership of USA Gymastics; it’s also about what went so wrong with society to see the abuse of young girls as cause for celebration.

Comments

Add a comment

Your name

Your comment

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

Amy (2015)

Though it sometimes borders on voyeurism, this incredibly intimate documentary uncovers new depths of the legendary singer’s misunderstood persona

7.6

Gods and Monsters (1998)

A speculative but compassionate depiction of the later days of one of the first ever Hollywood directors

7.9

Beyond the Mat (1999)

The quintessential ‘90s pro wrestling documentary that shows that the top of the mountain carries more insanity than glory

8.0

A Revolution on Canvas (2023)

An Iranian artist looks back on a life of revolutionary and familial struggle in this heartbreaking but illuminating documentary

7.5

The Quiet American (2002)

An effortless adaptation of the challenging romantic political drama

7.2

Fighting with My Family (2019)

A refreshing look at pro wrestling through teen comedy drama tropes

7.5

Leave the World Behind (2023)

Shyamalan meets Black Mirror in this hugely entertaining, visually inventive apocalyptic thriller with a killer ending

8.2

Hail Satan? (2019)

Forget everything you think you know about the Satanic Temple

8.0

Wind River (2017)

Sicario's screenwriter directs this story of murder in an Indigenous reserve

9.4

Incendies (2011)

Part melodrama, part war thriller, Incendies is gorgeous and heartbreaking from the first scene

9.9

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2024 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.