Genre Guesstimation – 42 Up (1998)

The idea behind this feature (Genre Guesstimation) is for me to watch a bunch of new movies (or ones that I haven’t seen many times) from the chosen monthly GG genre in order to expand my knowledge of movies within that particular genre.

This month’s Genre has been chosen by Quiggy of The Midnite Drive-In and it is Documentary Films.

Please get me your submissions by the 25th of Dec by sending them to docuquiggy@movierob.net

Try to think out of the box!

Let’s see if I felt that this movie would be worthy of being in the company of my others favorite movies in the genre of Documentary Films.…

“Well, I’m not married. I value all experience. I feel that part of my life hasn’t happened. I’m not homosexual therefore I do hanker after a stable relationship with a woman. I’ve never been able to achieve that and I think I’m somehow deficient in… my ability to react to the needs of others through not having had that relationship. ” – Neil

Number of Times Seen – 1 (20 Dec 2018)

Brief Synopsis – A look at the same group of 14 seven year old children 7 years after the previous update on their lives when they were 42 years old.

My Take on it – This is a film series that I was quite interested in seeing because of the overall premise.

I didn’t know what to expect and feared that this might get boring watching the way that these people grow up over the years but the exact opposite was true, I was so entranced by the lives of these anonymous people.

I was so looking forward to seeing this installment because it was the closest that they would get to my own age of (nearly) 45.

We once again get to see what has transpired in the lives of these subjects in the intervening 7 years and how things ave changed whether for better or worse.

The most amazing segment of this installment is the fact that one of the subjects actually reached out to another one who was in trouble in order to help him out.

This resulted in a friendship that is able to cross social classes and it was fascinating to see one actually be in attendance of the other’s wedding.

Te fact that these films have also created connections between the subjects themselves is great to see because it says so much about how much of a difference this series has made on each of their lives.

This installment also gets to deal with new challenges in the lives of the subjects as they reach middle age and much face difficulties dealing with that age since everything is constantly in motion.

On a personal note, the fact that I can relate to the subjects in this film so much due to the similarities in age helped me have a more complete outlook on their lives as well as my own.

Bottom Line – This is yet another great chapter in the lives of these 14 seven year olds as we get to see how they have lived their lives ever since the very first film. The most amazing segment of this installment is the fact that one of the subjects made contact with another one when he was having trouble in life and they became friends which even included an invitation to the other’s wedding a few years later which says so much about the connections between the subjects especially ones who grew up in different social classes. This installment also deals with new challenges in the lives of the subjects as the all get older and things around them are constantly in motion. Having the subjects even closer to my own age also adds so much to my own outlook on their lives and how they relate to my own. Highly Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Of the 14 original interviewees, 11 take part in this installment. (From IMDB)

Genre Grandeur Worthy? – Most Definitely. Another excellent chapter in the lives of these young kids who have now all reached middle age.

Rating – Oscar Worthy (9/10)

If you missed any of the reviews of this series, check them out below:

Seven Up! (1964)

7 Plus Seven (1970)

21 Up (1977)

28 Up (1984)

35 Up (1991)

49 Up (2005)

56 Up (2012)

Roundup of the whole UP series (1964-2012)