The Last Stop (2017)

The Last Stop: Directed by Todd Nilssen. With Liz Arnold, Peter Arnold, Daniel Bennison, Jeff Bloking. The Elan School was the last stop. Set deep in the woods of Maine, Elan delivered controversial therapy to troubled teens. It was a meat grinder of raw emotion and harsh discipline. Some say it sold hope, others say it sold Hell.

“u0026quot;Whatu0026#39;s a life worth?u0026quot;u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003enRoughly 54k plus a year. nThe élan one corporation charged scared parents, fed up DCF workers, this exorbitant amount per child, per year. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eDespite the fact élan received roughly 54K a year, per child, there were weeks without running water, heat, or electricity, children with ill fitting clothing and shoes, etc.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003e*Please note I am sharing experiences from the 1990 through 1993 era. *u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003enUpon hearing that u0026quot;The Last Stopu0026quot; would (finally) be made, I met the news with joy, uncertainty, and hope. nHope that it was for real, this time.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThat warm, beautiful, April night (of the premiere) I was filled with a n palpable anxiety. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWalking into the movie theatre, seeing almost EVERY seat filled, filled my eyes with tears.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThese were my fellow Elan brothers, sisters, friends, and supporters. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWe were here for ourselves and for each other.nThis IS for real, this is going to happen. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003en TJ u0026amp; Co. would be facing a Herculean task to tell all of our stories, represent both sides. I did not envy the job ahead.. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThat said, The documentary was refreshingly unbiased. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI knew it would be hard to walk that line. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eTJ u0026amp; Co. told the story with amazing accuracy and never once did you u0026quot;feelu0026quot; his personal feelings. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHe allowed each individuals story to shine through on its own. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHe did it in such a way that you could watch it and not feel forcibly swayed. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNo matter your prior feelings about élan, you were allowed to consider all sides when each person shared their experience.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe blending of past and present was done seamlessly. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe integration of Joe Ricciu0026#39;s life outside of the élan one corporation did not cause any noticeable u0026quot;hiccupsu0026quot; in the flow of the story. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003e The background on Mr. Ricci was eye opening. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWe had been taught to revere this man like a u0026quot;God among menu0026quot;. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eJoe arriving on the ramshackle compound was met with noticeable glee and giddiness- amongst the staff and older residents that were u0026quot;in the clubu0026quot;. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003ePeople have jokingly compared this program to the u0026quot;Lord of the Fliesu0026quot; , but there was no joke about it. It was sadly true.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNo matter if you were a u0026quot;golden childu0026quot; or a u0026quot;corner childu0026quot; or fell somewhere in between, this program did eat a chunk of your soul. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eMany of the u0026quot;golden childrenu0026quot; are no longer with us on this earth. nMany of the u0026quot;corner childrenu0026quot; doomed to u0026quot;die with a needle in their armsu0026quot; as Mark Rosenberg so eloquently put it, are doing quite well with beautiful, enviable, lives.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI donu0026#39;t believe graduating the program as a u0026quot;success storyu0026quot; meant a damn thing in the grand scheme of things. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIf your success story came on the backs of verbally abusing and emotionally torturing others, then how successful were you really?u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBut again, that is my opinion and it is (probably) quite biased. n(I feel the need to say not everyone falls under the aforementioned statement)u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe one thing this documentary has taught me and will hopefully teach others, is that there is more than one way to handle u0026quot;problem childrenu0026quot; and that one size does not fit all when it comes to therapy.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eSadly many states and state workers and parents fed up with incorrigible children, overmedicated children , improperly diagnosed children , etc. allowed the élan one corporation to take the burden off of their hands. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWhile sticking them in a place like the élan one corporation may have eased their caseload/burden, all it did was further damage a young impressionable growing human. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eMany say élanu0026#39;s tactics were a u0026quot;necessary evilu0026quot;.nI saw those tactics rip people to shreds, and destroy their lives- for years and decades. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eMany of these people died before seeing that life was, and could be nbeautiful.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eMy trip to see the premiere of this documentary in Portland last April, allowed me to truly heal, truly forgive, and truly move on. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI suppose you could say I am FINALLY an élan success story. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003enPS: I just want to give much love to everybody involved with the creation of this film, with getting it out to the public, the film festivals, etc.nfor getting the message out there, for supporting all of us, and befriending us. nBe kind to yourselves and each other.”