Review of Tattooed Tears (1979) by Kunst J — 29 Oct 2011

In this haunting documentary film maker Nick Broomfield spends thirteen weeks charting the lives of teenagers inside a maximum security juvenile correctional facility in California. Broomfield was able to capture many intriguing moments and insights into some of the inmates, so much so that to this day I still wonder what became of them. The grainy colour of the film stock that was used for most of the footage combined with the unnatural light given off by the facility's fluorescent lights contributes to an overall atmosphere of dread that is thick enough to cut with a knife.

Tattooed Tears was one of Nick Broomfield's earliest films and showcases the talents of a promising young film maker who went on to make Kurt and Courtney, Biggie and Tupac, Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer and The Battle for Haditha.