The 5 Browns: Digging through the Darkness
Film
Review by Kam Williams
The
5 Browns is a musical quintet composed of siblings born in Houston,
Texas between 1979 and 1986, all of whom started studying classical
piano at an early age. In 1991, they moved
to Utah where they were home schooled.
The
promising prodigies eventually came to the attention of Juilliard
which made the unusual gesture of enrolling them all to the exclusive
conservatory simultaneously.
Desirae,
Deondra, Gregory, Melody and Ryan skyrocketed to fame in the wake of
a profile in the New York Times which led to further coverage in
People Magazine and other popular periodicals as well as to
appearances on Oprah, 60 Minutes and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
Meanwhile, they began releasing albums, three of which reached #1 on
the Classical charts.
Managed
by their parents, Keith and Lisa, The 5 Browns went on numerous tours
around the world where they would do charity events prior to
performing in prominent concert halls. Between mom picking their
repertoire and dad overscheduling them, the music wasn't fun anymore
and the kids found themselves putting on fake faces on stage.
But
far worse was the fact that Keith had been sexually abusing his
daughters for years. In 2007, the devastated girls learned about each
other and summoned the courage to confront him about the incest. But
he failed to exhibit any contrition. Instead, he started representing
some aspiring female teen musicians.
Alarmed,
Desirae, Deondra and Melody decided to report their father to the
police. Keith was arrested, pled guilty to child sex abuse, and is
currently serving a sentence of 10 years to life.
When
publicized, the tragic revelations shocked the fans of The 5 Browns,
given their previously wholesome, happy family image. However, being
repeatedly sexually abused by their dad understandably left the girls
traumatized, with the stress even causing one to go blind in an eye.
To
their credit, Desirae and Deondra are now working with N.Y. Senator
Kirsten Gillibrand to extend the statute of limitations for child sex
abuse victims. And they have created
a not-profit organization called The Foundation for Survivors of
Abuse.
All
of the above is chronicled in engaging fashion in The
5 Browns: Digging through the Darkness. The revealing documentary
marks the latest offering from director Ben Niles who figured out how
to handle a very difficult subject with just the right balance of
probing and sensitivity.
A
moving tale of survival that's timely, too, given the emergence of
the #MeToo movement.
Excellent
(3.5 stars)
Unrated
Running
time: 100 minutes
Production
Company: Plow Productions
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