Loving Lampposts: Living Autistic

The title of Todd Drezner's documentary derives from the fact that his autistic son, Sam, loves lampposts; but Drezner goes beyond the personal to solicit input from doctors, educators, advocates, parents, and autistic adults, presenting varying views on the condition, which is apparent in 1 out of 100 children. Author Roy Richard Grinker (Unstrange Minds) defines autism as a “developmental disorder and disability,” but that's just one definition among many, since some see autism as a psychological condition (simply a “different way of being”), while others—like Defeat Autism Now (DAN)—view it as physiological-based. Considering the latter, Drezner explores treatment options and meets with parents whose kids no longer display symptoms, but he remains skeptical of the DAN-oriented model, which seeks to identify a cause—such as mercury or vaccines (the authors behind a Lancet study linking autism to vaccination later retracted their results). Drezner ultimately sees no benefit in treating autistic youngsters as broken and in need of repair, and he also expresses concern that the media often presents autism as tragic rather than challenging. Dr. Grinker and Simon Baron-Cohen (of Cambridge University's Autism Research Centre) take similar positions, arguing that autism isn't an epidemic, as some believe, but that the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual description has changed over time, accounting for the increase in numbers. Drezner finds no easy answers, but his conclusions are more positive than not. DVD extras include extended interviews. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)