Review of Happy Valley (2014) by Howhaveyouben — 23 Mar 2016

It tries to remain impartial, but almost all of the people interviewed defend Paterno. Only the lawyer for the victims is interviewed saying that the administration in addition to the community and culture were complacent and turned a blind eye to Sandusky.

It shows that the fans are insane and obsessed often making people nervous for their safety. The worst part is they have rational people like Paterno's widow, Son's, Biographer, and some teacher defending Paterno and trying to deny that the culture played any role in the cover up.

There are also multiple interviews with community members devoted to Paterno who refuse to take a look at themselves and realize that their blind adoration and obsession with legacy could possibly be the reason that someone would want to hide any blemishes.

It doesn't defend Paterno or defend the community, but it turns a blind eye to the root cause of this phenomenon. This movie had a real opportunity to show the fans who they really are and try to take off the rose colored glasses and add some perspective, but it drops the ball.

Maybe it's impossible to find someone in that town who thinks that the innocence of children might be a little more important than a washed up coach from the 50's and his win record, but it doesn't seem like they tried too hard.