51 Birch Street

Shortly after his mother Mina's death, filmmaker Doug Block's father Mike—a retired engineer—married his one-time secretary Kitty and announced his intention to move to Florida. This sudden chain of events—coupled with the discovery of Mina's diaries, covering over three decades—led Block and his two sisters to wonder about their parents' life together. In 51 Birch Street, Block interviews his father (with whom he's never been close), as well as his stepmother and other relatives, while also interweaving diary excerpts, home movies, archival stills, and newly-shot footage to fill out a portrait of a marriage that lasted over 50 years but wasn't quite what it seemed. In piecing together the evidence, Block raises certain expectations and then neatly subverts them, along the way exploring the complicated emotions and inevitable compromises that are a necessary part of family life, while also deepening his own relationship with his father and siblings. A touching and profound personal documentary, this is highly recommended. [Note: DVD extras include a featurette with follow-up interviews of family members, as well as a “music video” of the director's uncle John singing a song he wrote years earlier titled “I Flunk Adultery.” Bottom line: a solid extras package for an excellent doc.] (F. Swietek)