Written by Paul Jerome Watson, Photo courtesy of Netflix
Netflix documentaries have always been a worthwhile investment that invited change. “Making a Murderer” saw the world focus on the circumstances and conviction of Steven Avery. “Tiger King” and zookeeper Joe Exotic became an internet sensation that put eyes on Carole Baskin’s missing husband. “Procession” aims to accomplish bringing the same attention to victims of sexual abuse by the Catholic Church in a haunting, personal and poignant film.
“Procession” follows six survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic Priests: Mike Foreman, Joe Eldred, Dan Laurine, Ed Gavagan, Michael Sandridge and Tom Viviano. From Kansas City, Mo., the men speak to how they’re healing from their trauma. The framework of the film is built from interviews with the survivors alongside the production of their own dramatic scenes, facilitating their healing processes and confronting their experiences.
It’s this framework that makes “Procession” so engrossing. A survivor can recount their abuse in one scene, choking back tears as others support them, before expressing their emotions in an avant-garde setting where they swing a sledgehammer around a white room the next. It’s a surreal experience that only fails to captivate once in the opening where the necessary information hasn’t been given yet, making it hard not to choke back laughter despite the heavy subject matter.
The camerawork is excellent. The multiple close-up interviews feel claustrophobic and weighty, putting the audience in the shoes of the survivors recounting their trauma. That effect is still felt up to the credits of the documentary as that weight is elevated by the film’s use of color where contrasting, vivid, bright hues mingle from scene to scene. This is all aided by fantastic editing that keeps a consistent tone between survivors, settings and perspectives while never feeling stagnant or numb.
Ultimately, the biggest fault of “Procession” is focus, both too much on certain survivors and too little on others. Foreman makes an immediate impression before disappearing for 30 minutes and reappearing after Sandridge and Gavagan- who go on to appear throughout the majority of the documentary. Viviano’s legal case was covered in red tape which felt less impactful compared to other interviews because the film has little to focus on outside of one interview where he states his motivation. Gavagan is a driving force behind the production but is removed when Eldred is introduced, Sandridge and Laurine still there.
“Procession” aims to invite the change “Making a Murderer” and “Tiger King” made, so much so it dedicates itself to all the unknown and silenced survivors of the Church’s abuse in the credits. It is that invitation that drives a film that, while somewhat lacking in focus, puts the audience in the shoes of its survivors and the horrible events decades removed. It is haunting, beautiful, harrowing and above it all, powerful.
