The Forgiveness Journey
The Forgiveness Journey is not just a documentary; it is a very personal trip for the director Matt Duhamel. He shares his life with the audience. Duhamel was arrested in 2006 for a sex offense; which then led to him becoming estranged with his own daughter. Holding nothing back for the cameras, Duhamel talks candidly about the incident and how he longs to rebuild his relationship with his child. His daughter won’t speak to her father and the basic need and love of a parent is very evident.
As well as hearing Matt’s own story, we get to hear of other people who have been done wrong and have since let go of the anger and resentment. Matt talks to a man called Kurtis whose own uncle raised and abused him from an early age. Whilst any kind of abuse is bad, it’s heart-breaking to hear the level of abuse received here. Yet Kurtis has forgiven all his wrongdoings and moved on.
Like Duhamel’s short film, The Forgiveness Journey is well made. The documentary features some nice interviews mixed with re-enactments, heart-warming stories and great research. Add into the fact that Matt never lets the documentary become boring thanks to smart editing; the final result is an interesting film.