Review of Freakonomics (2010) by Brandon S — 10 Sep 2010

Like a high-brow Mythbusters, Freakonomics is an insightful, controversial, and fascinating look at everyday apparent truths vs. deeper truths. As for the film's own hidden truth, it is an easily accessible, understandable, and enlightening look at things relevant to families of this day and age. Things conventional wisdom states being one way (your real estate agent's advice, the lifelong effect of your child's name, cheating in competitions, sources reduction in crime, bribing kids to succeed, etc.), are broken down, examined for surface vs. deeper truths, and then added to with a reasonable, logical, and often jaw-dropping conclusions. You would be doing yourself and your children a disservice by missing it.

I am actually loathe to mention that this film is based upon the book, "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. Not because the book is bad, in point of fact, I haven't even read it yet (but the film certainly made me want to), but because the absolute last way you try and sell someone on a movie is by saying "it's this really fascinating series of short films based on a book about economics!" Anyone short of an hardcore NPR junkie would typically run away at such a description. However, the film isn't actually about economics at all. It is about causality (trying to find a line between cause and effect). Far from being an intimidating subject, it is incredibly light-hearted, instantly makes itself friendly to the viewer, and it tackles easily understood problems using layman's terms, easily understood explanations, and any questions that pop up are almost instantly answered a few seconds later.

If I were to have a single complaint about Freakonomics, it is that the film ends too quickly, and more to the point, should be a weekly series on PBS or the Discovery Channel. There was no ramp-down in the fascination effect. One minute I was listening to the conclusion of the previous segment, eagerly awaiting the next subject the pair would tackle...and then it ended with a "Well, that's it," sort of wrap-up. But how good was the film? It made me want to read the book, learn deeper truths about everyday concepts and misconceptions, and managed to teach even this old dog a few new tricks. My recommendation: make it required viewing for parents, teachers, and students, as they have the most to gain from seeing it.

Also, don't bet on Sumo Wrestling until you know how yaocho works.