The Self-Made Man: Rational Suicide
Is it ever rational to choose death? On Independence Day at Stern Ranch, 77-year-old solar energy pioneer Bob Stern finds out he's seriously ill - possibly dying. Meanwhile, an elderly in-law is dying on artificial life support. Bob decides to cheat that fate and take his own life. His family tries to stop him. Bob sets up a video camera. Daughter Susan Stern (Barbie Nation) explores "rational suicide," the "right-to-die" and the difficult end-of-life choices faced by an aging population.
Running Time
58 mins
Year
2005
Kanopy ID
1187820
Filmmakers
Features
Languages
Subjects
Show More
Related videos
Sound of Insects
In a remote forest, a hunter discovers a mummified corpse and a diary, detailing the man's thoughts as he commits suicide through self-imposed starvation. Based on an incredible true story, THE SOUND OF INSECTS is a stunning investigation into the man's enigmatic self-destructive motivations.
Dream Deceivers
On December 23, 1985, Raymond Belknap and James Vance--two young men in Reno, Nevada--put shotguns to their heads after drinking and smoking marijuana as they listened to the rock group Judas Priest. Belknap shot himself fatally, while Vance was grossly disfigured.
Their parents, claiming that subliminal messages in the heavy…
Our Brother James
Australia has one of the highest youth suicide rates in the world. The suicide rate in men under twenty-five has tripled in the last thirty years, and young men in rural and remote communities are particularly vulnerable. This reality has disturbing implications for society. When it affects you directly, it's…
Father's Day
Haunted by his inability to prevent his father's death at age 17, the making of this film came to span twenty years as Lipman tried to construct an image of his father from relatives' memories and psychiatric records unearthed from hospital archives. The film circles around to become an inquiry…
Fierce Goodbye
In this video, family survivors reveal their intimate stories and aching pain to assist other survivors and to help the broader community understand the unique and terrible grief of suicide. This documentary explores Protestant, Catholic, Jewish, and Greek Orthodox responses to suicide.
Shallow Waters - The Public Death of Raymond Zack
How does a mentally ill person drown himself in a few feet of water on a crowded Memorial Day beach?
A tall, middle-aged, fully dressed man walks up to his shoulders into the cold shallow waters of San Francisco Bay; and he waits. Police and Fire units respond in droves;…
El Huaso: The Last Rodeo
Mental illness and depression are compellingly explored in the story of Gustavo, a successful businessman who he lives in a cozy home surrounded by a loving family. Although his life seems perfect, the 58-year-old Chilean immigrant struggles with an increasingly urgent impulse toward suicide--just like his father before him. Gustavo…
The Bridge
The Golden Gate Bridge is an iconic structure; a symbol of San Francisco, the West, freedom - and something more, something spiritual, something words cannot describe. Director Eric Steel and his crew spent an entire year focusing on the Bridge. Running cameras for almost every daylight minute, they documented nearly…
The Choice of a Lifetime - Returning From the Brink of Suicide
Six people, ages 21 to 73, share the circumstances that led them to the brink of suicide, what stopped them, and the different ways each found to transform and heal their lives.
A suicide attempt is made every minute in the United States - every 17 minutes, an attempt is…
Suicide Attempt Survivors
YOU CAN'T ASK THAT asks suicide attempt survivors the awkward or uncomfortable questions you've always wanted to know the answers to, but never had the guts to ask.
The Joy of Life
Multitalented performance artist Harriet "Harry" Dodge (By Hook or By Crook, Cecil B. Demented) brings to life this innovative story of a butch dyke in San Francisco searching for love and self-discovery. Against a backdrop of stunning landscape cinematography, this bold, lyrical voiceover film evolves from lesbian lust story to…
Here One Day - A Family Copes with Mental Illness
When filmmaker Kathy Leichter moved back into her childhood home after her mother's suicide, she discovered a hidden box of audiotapes. Sixteen years passed before she had the courage to delve into this trove, unearthing details that her mother had recorded about every aspect of her life from the joys…
