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I love a documentary that gets me fired up. I need a documentary that makes me question every normality that I have believed to be true. I crave a film that will make me passionate about issues I never knew existed. In short, what I need is the Internet’s Own Boy.

The Internet’s Own Boy follows the life of Aaron Swartz, emphasising his work in internet rights. Swartz was on many boards for creating some of our world’s most used software when he was just fifteen years old, which would later get him into Stanford. After a few weeks at Stanford, he dropped out to pursue creating the popular website: Reddit. But the plot thickens. Swartz discovers that the United States law, which is public domain, is not public access and to access it, people must pay to see it. This however is illegal. The film encompasses his journey into fishing for justice.

The Internet’s Own Boy’s main theme would be social justice. He explains that we as a society need to challenge our own government so we can have what we deserve: access to our own laws. Swartz also challenged the idea of ageism. As a twelve year old, he developed a website similar to Wikipedia and later would develop a make-your-own-website page. Swartz constantly changed the status quo and was willing to put himself at risk for the good of others.

Internet’s Own Boy is practically flawless. To the general public it is sensible, riveting, and eye-opening. It makes the audience begin questioning, like any good documentary would. However, the absence of music was noticed. There were times where a dramatic soundtrack would have enhanced the points being made. Young people use the internet all the time and are notoriously pirates and hackers. This film does not condone that behavior, but it encourages that young people stand up for what they believe is right, no matter the cost.

The film has it’s strengths and weaknesses. It has a remarkable strength for connecting with the audience and inspiring people to question the social justice in America. However, the film doesn’t address why we as a people should be concerned that we can’t access our laws. It recognizes that what the government is doing is incredibly illegal, but it doesn’t make of note of why we should care. I don’t particularly care if I don’t have access to court records because I don’t believe I’ll ever need to use them. So why should I care?

I highly recommend the Internet’s Own Boy. It makes you laugh. It makes you cry. Then it makes you beg for more. The people involved make you want to listen. This film is great for any age, although profanity is abundant, so it may not be the best for younger audiences. Aaron Swartz was an asset to our society. To quote Tim Berners-Lee, “We have lost a fighter. We have lost somebody who put huge energy into righting wrongs…. Let us weep”.

~ by 042238 on .