Reviews and Media on HBO Documentary Going Clear

[Lulu Belle]

Awesome article. I posted it in Media Reports. To avoid double posting, I'll post that link here.

http://www.forum.exscn.net/showthre...-Easy-Being-Scientology&p=1019861#post1019861

 

[ILove2Lurk]

. . .
My ** no detail spoilers ** review of Going Clear.

Just my off-the-cuff takeaways.

We arranged an extended layover in Los Angeles before flying back to Wyoming so we could see the documentary. Just to be a touch high-paranoid (hubby not so much), we parked the rental car a ways away and strolled over to the theater on foot after our lunch. Wore my oversize Prada sunglasses and a concealing sun hat.

Movie began and I was riveted for the full two hours. Sorta like watching segments of your life rolling out in front of your eyes.

Now being I've been out for twenty years and lurking for at least ten, so not much brand new information. But a lot of still shots and clips I hadn't seen before. A massively expansive story cut really well to fit into two hours. I enjoyed the flow of the movie but the very, very end felt just a little rushed for my taste. I can always handle more, more, more, but I know about the two-hour threshold.

In a word: devastating!

An utterly devastating and shocking documentary for the audience it's meant for: the never-ins and those who are currently in and will break the rules and take a peek in the privacy of their own homes.

For those of us who have our advanced degrees already, that is, a Master or Bachelor of Heretical Arts and Sciences, not so shocking at this point but VERY entertaining. I'll watch it again at home someday.

It's game over for COS after this one. Never will get this genie back in the bottle.

Auditors, CSes, MAAs, and others, get ready for a whole bunch of new questions from your public and raw meat.

No more new blood coming after this. They'll really have to bleed those who are still in right now much harder for cash. Miscavige tanked the COS with his various misbehaviors, now revealed on screen in digital HD.

He'll definitely own the positioning in the marketplace of ideas as an "insane cult leader" after people see this one. No question.

And all those stupid Karin Pouw letters . . . ZERO effect at the end of the day.

You'll love the movie, I think!


PS: Hey, I never got my complimentary goldenrod!

http://www.forum.exscn.net/showthre...-Los-Angeles&p=1015945&viewfull=1#post1015945

 

[Northern Shewolf]

Congratulations and kudos on your acheivement.
A GOLDENROD Wow! I am sort of envious, you must be so excited to have an official "I am TRULY OUT".
Good on you! As a never-in curiosity is the main dish and I want here to acknowledge all your work, the suffering you endured to get out from under, this is what I celebrate: your escape, bravissimo!!!

 

[AnonyMary]

. . .
My ** no detail spoilers ** review of Going Clear.

Just my off-the-cuff takeaways.

We arranged an extended layover in Los Angeles before flying back to Wyoming so we could see the documentary. Just to be a touch high-paranoid (hubby not so much), we parked the rental car a ways away and strolled over to the theater on foot after our lunch. Wore my oversize Prada sunglasses and a concealing sun hat.

Movie began and I was riveted for the full two hours. Sorta like watching segments of your life rolling out in front of your eyes.

Now being I've been out for twenty years and lurking for at least ten, so not much brand new information. But a lot of still shots and clips I hadn't seen before. A massively expansive story cut really well to fit into two hours. I enjoyed the flow of the movie but the very, very end felt just a little rushed for my taste. I can always handle more, more, more, but I know about the two-hour threshold.

In a word: devastating!

An utterly devastating and shocking documentary for the audience it's meant for: the never-ins and those who are currently in and will break the rules and take a peek in the privacy of their own homes.

For those of us who have our advanced degrees already, that is, a Master or Bachelor of Heretical Arts and Sciences, not so shocking at this point but VERY entertaining. I'll watch it again at home someday.

It's game over for COS after this one. Never will get this genie back in the bottle.

Auditors, CSes, MAAs, and others, get ready for a whole bunch of new questions from your public and raw meat.

No more new blood coming after this. They'll really have to bleed those who are still in right now much harder for cash. Miscavige tanked the COS with his various misbehaviors, now revealed on screen in digital HD.

He'll definitely own the positioning in the marketplace of ideas as an "insane cult leader" after people see this one. No question.

And all those stupid Karin Pouw letters . . . ZERO effect at the end of the day.

You'll love the movie, I think!


PS: Hey, I never got my complimentary goldenrod!

http://www.forum.exscn.net/showthre...-Los-Angeles&p=1015945&viewfull=1#post1015945

Thanks for your review. Very inspiring for me!!

 

[Sindy]

. . .
My ** no detail spoilers ** review of Going Clear.

Just my off-the-cuff takeaways.

We arranged an extended layover in Los Angeles before flying back to Wyoming so we could see the documentary. Just to be a touch high-paranoid (hubby not so much), we parked the rental car a ways away and strolled over to the theater on foot after our lunch. Wore my oversize Prada sunglasses and a concealing sun hat.

Movie began and I was riveted for the full two hours. Sorta like watching segments of your life rolling out in front of your eyes.

Now being I've been out for twenty years and lurking for at least ten, so not much brand new information. But a lot of still shots and clips I hadn't seen before. A massively expansive story cut really well to fit into two hours. I enjoyed the flow of the movie but the very, very end felt just a little rushed for my taste. I can always handle more, more, more, but I know about the two-hour threshold.

In a word: devastating!

An utterly devastating and shocking documentary for the audience it's meant for: the never-ins and those who are currently in and will break the rules and take a peek in the privacy of their own homes.

For those of us who have our advanced degrees already, that is, a Master or Bachelor of Heretical Arts and Sciences, not so shocking at this point but VERY entertaining. I'll watch it again at home someday.

It's game over for COS after this one. Never will get this genie back in the bottle.

Auditors, CSes, MAAs, and others, get ready for a whole bunch of new questions from your public and raw meat.

No more new blood coming after this. They'll really have to bleed those who are still in right now much harder for cash. Miscavige tanked the COS with his various misbehaviors, now revealed on screen in digital HD.

He'll definitely own the positioning in the marketplace of ideas as an "insane cult leader" after people see this one. No question.

And all those stupid Karin Pouw letters . . . ZERO effect at the end of the day.

You'll love the movie, I think!


PS: Hey, I never got my complimentary goldenrod!

http://www.forum.exscn.net/showthre...-Los-Angeles&p=1015945&viewfull=1#post1015945

Great review! Sunday cannot come soon enough.

And to think, yet another BBC documentary comes after this as well as many books. Game over cult.

 

[Free Being Me]

. . .
My ** no detail spoilers ** review of Going Clear.

Just my off-the-cuff takeaways.

We arranged an extended layover in Los Angeles before flying back to Wyoming so we could see the documentary. Just to be a touch high-paranoid (hubby not so much), we parked the rental car a ways away and strolled over to the theater on foot after our lunch. Wore my oversize Prada sunglasses and a concealing sun hat.

Movie began and I was riveted for the full two hours. Sorta like watching segments of your life rolling out in front of your eyes.

Now being I've been out for twenty years and lurking for at least ten, so not much brand new information. But a lot of still shots and clips I hadn't seen before. A massively expansive story cut really well to fit into two hours. I enjoyed the flow of the movie but the very, very end felt just a little rushed for my taste. I can always handle more, more, more, but I know about the two-hour threshold.

In a word: devastating!

An utterly devastating and shocking documentary for the audience it's meant for: the never-ins and those who are currently in and will break the rules and take a peek in the privacy of their own homes.

For those of us who have our advanced degrees already, that is, a Master or Bachelor of Heretical Arts and Sciences, not so shocking at this point but VERY entertaining. I'll watch it again at home someday.

It's game over for COS after this one. Never will get this genie back in the bottle.

Auditors, CSes, MAAs, and others, get ready for a whole bunch of new questions from your public and raw meat.

No more new blood coming after this. They'll really have to bleed those who are still in right now much harder for cash. Miscavige tanked the COS with his various misbehaviors, now revealed on screen in digital HD.

He'll definitely own the positioning in the marketplace of ideas as an "insane cult leader" after people see this one. No question.

And all those stupid Karin Pouw letters . . . ZERO effect at the end of the day.

You'll love the movie, I think!


PS: Hey, I never got my complimentary goldenrod!

http://www.forum.exscn.net/showthre...-Los-Angeles&p=1015945&viewfull=1#post1015945

 

[Lulu Belle]

OK. This is a hoot.

Not because there's any real new info in it.

It's because it's from redbookmag.com.

REDBOOK.

Recipes. Tips for feeding your family on $15 a week. Constipation medication ads. How to help your child to learn to read.

This is the Stay At Home Moms in Iowa mag. What you see in the rack at the grocery store in the suburbs of Cleveland.

Here we go.


...........

http://www.redbookmag.com/life/news/a21079/new-sordid-details-emerge-about-tom-cruise/

New Sordid Details Emerge About the Role Scientology Played in Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman's Marriage


(excerpt)

Besides severely underpaying workers, Going Clear also suggests that Tom ordered the church to tap Nicole's phone while they were off filming Eyes Wide Shut together. Frankly, we can see how working on that flick would make you a little untrusting of your spouse but phone tapping? That's just too far.

Marty Rathbun, who was at one point second-highest ranking official at the church before he left, told Gibney that he was appalled when he was asked to bug Nicole's phone but he did as he was told.

Rathbun, who was allegedly physically abused by Miscavige, wouldn't share what info they gathered from her phone calls, but Tom and Nicole did split several years later, at which point, Tom became even more involved in Scientology, so draw your own conclusions.

Going Clear airs on HBO on March 29.

For more strange reports on Tom and Nicole's divorce, go here.

.......


I know when I was in, Miscavige/Management had an obsession about Scientology being a "grassroots" movement and getting all these "regular people" to know about it.

Well, I guess you need to be careful about what you wish for....

 

[Smurf]

A critic who has been unable to post (mods have been advised) asked me to alert you to a Canadian radio program where Mike Rinder was interviewed:

"Mike Rinder was once a very public face of the Church of Scientology. For years, the former spokesperson made the media rounds, defending Scientology against detractors — but in 2007, he left the church and became one of its critics.

Rinder is now a key voice in Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief, a new HBO documentary directed by the acclaimed filmmaker Alex Gibney (The Armstrong Lie) ​and based on the book by Lawrence Wright. The film documents allegations by former Church members, including Rinder's claims that he endured beatings and other punishments while still a member.

Today he joins guest host Piya Chattopadhyay to reflect on his longtime commitment to Scientology, why he didn't go quietly, and why he thinks people should believe him, despite the Church's vehement denials."

http://www.cbc.ca/radio/q/q-schedul...pokesman-mike-rinder-on-going-clear-1.3009185

 

[chipgallo]

NPR covered the upcoming big show on "All Things Considered" today.

http://www.npr.org/2015/03/26/395579453/church-of-scientology-calls-new-hbo-documentary-bigoted

 

[CommunicatorIC]

Tony Ortega: ‘Going Clear': Sara Goldberg on how Scientology turned her own daughter against her

http://tonyortega.org/2015/03/26/thursday/

 

[CommunicatorIC]

CBC Radio - AUDIO: Ex-Scientology spokesman Mike Rinder on Going Clear

http://www.cbc.ca/radio/q/q-schedul...pokesman-mike-rinder-on-going-clear-1.3009185

21 minutes of audio at link.

 

[CommunicatorIC]

AlterNet: 6 Desperate Ways the Church of Scientology Is Trying to Stop 'Going Clear'

http://www.alternet.org/media/6-desperate-ways-church-scientology-trying-stop-going-clear

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

3. Producing a Series of Mini-Documentaries to Defame Everyone Associated with the Film and the Book Upon Which It’s Based.

The Church apparently decided to enter the realm of documentary filmmaking in its own defense, producing several films that individually attack those who appear in or were part of the creation of "Going Clear." Titles include “Sara Goldberg: The Homewrecker,” “Marc Headley: The Soulless Sellout,” “Marty Rathbun: A Violent Psychopath,” “Mike Rinder: The Wife Beater,” and more. Each is filled with the hallmarks of fear-mongering filmmaking: haunting orchestral musical scores; greyscale images of the accused; that tabloid-news “swoosh” noise between segments; etc. (Again, the full list of films is in the letter.) Check out “Spanky Taylor: The Drama Queen,” below:

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[CommunicatorIC]

The Atlantic: It's Not Easy Being Scientology

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/03/its-not-easy-being-scientology/388634/

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

Scientology, the movement established by L. Ron Hubbard in the ’50s, has long been known for its efforts to manipulate information about it in the public sphere. The group carefully crafts its image through widespread publicity campaigns (including a native advertisement published on this site in 2013) while suing and attacking those who portray it unfavorably. Over the past 25 years, the Church has filed lawsuits against high-profile publications such as Time and The Washington Post, as well as ex-employees who criticize the Church publicly. Hubbard himself encouraged aggressive legal action toward people who revealed secret information about the Church. According to a 1997 New York Times article, Hubbard once told his followers, “The purpose of the suit is to harass and discourage rather than win … If possible, of course, ruin [the opponent] utterly.”

But the Church is losing control of its public image—in large part because the flow of information in the digital age is irrepressible. “It’s the Internet that has changed everything,” says Tony Ortega, the former editor of The Village Voice and founder of a website, The Underground Bunker, that’s dedicated to criticizing Scientology.

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[CommunicatorIC]

SF Gate: Real, candid talk on Scientology in 'Going Clear’

http://www.sfgate.com/tv/article/Real-candid-talk-on-Scientology-in-Going-6161380.php

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

Let’s be clear.

On second thought, after watching Alex Gibney’s documentary about L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology, maybe not.

“Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief,” airing Sunday on HBO and based on the book by Lawrence Wright, is at times jaw-dropping, scary, unnerving, even disturbingly funny.

But the bad news for Scientology is that it’s also credible, despite unabashedly offering only one “side” of the ongoing debate about the validity of Scientology’s tenets and its status as a religion. The film benefits from candid testimony from several former Scientology members, like film director Paul Haggis and actor Jason Beghe, and former Scientology bigwigs such as Mark Rathbun, who was second in command to church board Chairman David Miscavige, and Mike Rinder, former chief spokesman for the church.


* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[CommunicatorIC]

Boston Globe: A damning view of Scientology in HBO’s ‘Going Clear’

http://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/tel...isbelieving/ebJOMNSrFd3f6tNAaQnp8N/story.html

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

Near the end of the new documentary “Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief,” longtime members who decided to leave the church struggle with their emotions. “Maybe,” muses one, “my entire life has been a lie.”

The guilt, disillusionment, shame, and pain is etched on their faces. To a person, they are incredulous that they once believed in the more offbeat aspects of the religion — including the idea that prehistoric spirits inhabited their bodies. And several speak of a kind of willful suppression of their better judgment to avoid the possibility that, at best, they wasted their time and, at worst, committed terrible transgressions against others, including their own family members, in the name of their beliefs.

This is but one compelling vignette in the fascinating documentary from Oscar- and Emmy-winning director Alex Gibney (“Taxi to the Dark Side,” “Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God”), which has its television premiere Sunday at 8 p.m. on HBO. (The two-hour film debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in January and recently had a limited theatrical release.) The film combines interviews with former members, reenactments, and footage of Scientology events. It also includes archival interviews with celebrity Church of Scientology members and founder L. Ron Hubbard himself; no one currently involved in the church would speak to Gibney for his film.


* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[CommunicatorIC]

Wall Street Journal: Some Things to Fear in ‘Going Clear’

http://www.wsj.com/articles/tv-review-going-clear-scientology-and-the-prison-of-belief-1427404413

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

Watching “Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief” can be a depressing experience, and not just for the two hours in which the HBO documentary runs. The haunting archival imagery—a powerful element here—fades after a few days, and much of what is said has been said before. Yet whether you come away seeing Scientology as a cult that ensnares vulnerable people or as a faith of self-empowerment, the film leaves a terrible taste of too much information. This must be its point, but take heed just the same.

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[CommunicatorIC]

Religion News Service: HBO’s ‘Going Clear’ leaves future of Scientology unclear

http://www.religionnews.com/2015/03/26/hbos-going-clear-leaves-future-scientology-unclear/

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

(RNS) The only murky thing in “Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief,” HBO’s scathing new documentary, is: What will happen to the church that sci-fi writer L. Ron Hubbard built more than 60 years ago after it airs?

The two-hour film directed by Academy Award-winning director Alex Gibney is a merciless examination of the Church of Scientology, the religion/business/self-help empire created by Hubbard, who died in 1986. The film, which airs Sunday (March 29) on HBO, alleges the church has practiced physical, psychological and financial abuse of its current and former members for decades.

And while the film is based on Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Lawrence Wright’s 2013 book with an almost identical title, the film manages something the book could not — it allows viewers to look into the eyes of former Scientologists as they describe years of abuse they say they suffered willingly at the hands of the church and the ultimate toll it took: lost relationships, broken lives, empty bank accounts and more.

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[JustSheila]

In addition to all the reviews and media on the Going Clear HBO documentary, all our sites exposing the various crimes of the cult Church of Scienology have ben getting a tremendous number of hits. As an additional benefit of the media exposure of the movie, the general public is already researching these crimes and watching the vids on their own, and hopefully, some Scientologists as well.

 

[CommunicatorIC]

Huffington Post: Everything You Need To Read, Watch And Listen To Before Seeing Scientology Doc 'Going Clear'

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/26/scientology-guide_n_6934866.html

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

15. Surviving Scientology Podcast

This podcast features many ex-Scientologists speaking about their experiences. The site's bio describes itself as "an in-depth critical podcast about Scientology." Interviews include former senior executive Mike Rinder (who is featured in the "Going Clear" documentary), third-generation Scientologist Mareka Brousseau and Karen De La Carriere -- one of the highest ranking, former members of Scientology.

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[CommunicatorIC]

Decider: ‘Going Clear’ Is The Incredible Doc We Expected — But Will It Bring Scientology’s Demise?

http://decider.com/2015/03/26/going-clear-alex-gibney-scientology-hbo/

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

It also doesn’t shy from depicting Tom Cruise as a egomaniacal actor who has reaped the benefits of the religious organization that has all but granted him sainthood. The film studies the BFF relationship between the actor and Miscavige (who, it’s impossible to notice, are nearly identical both in physical appearance and bravado), the paranoia-fueled unraveling of his relationship with Nicole Kidman (enabled by the church, who worked to break them apart), the lavish gifts bestowed upon him, and his global tours promoting Scientology practices.

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