Every 30 minutes someone is killed by a drunk driver. Alcohol is involved in 43% of teenage auto accidents. Over 17,000 people died in 1992 in alcohol-related car crashes (almost half of all traffic fatalities). Sobering statistics. But you won't find them in The Last Dance, an anti-drinking and driving video aimed at teens which is little more than an extended re-enactment similar to what you might see on Rescue 911. Virtually the entire video is one long vignette in which a pair of drinking and driving high school sweethearts slam into a tree. We watch the emergency crew load the victims, working feverishly to save them (ditto at the hospital emergency room). Eventually the parents are contacted and we hear a few wistful comments (of the "this needn't have happened" variety) between a police officer and a nurse. It's a well-done piece, production-wise, but why pay 300 bucks for something that--sadly--teens can see on free TV every night?The earlier mentioned drinking and driving statistics appear in the superior The MADD Safe-Driving Video, sponsored by the non-profit organization Mothers Against Drunk Driving. The tape opens with a powerful piece about a teenage boy whose promise was tragically cut short when a drunk driver's pickup jumped the median. Do teen viewers respond to this kind of story or brush it off? Hard to say, but unlike The Last Dance, this video doesn't put all of its eggs in one basket. Another section follows the search, arrest, fingerprinting, and lock-up of a teen driver who had been drinking, and offers interview clips of teens who went through the same humiliating ordeal. Far more telling than the unpleasant aspects of being arrested, however, are the punishments levied in court: license suspensions of 1-2 years, hundreds of dollars in fines, jail time or long probation periods, hefty lawyer expenses, and at the end of it all, an insurance hike that probably costs more than the teenager's car. There's also a visit to a drunk-driving simulator class, where teens feel what it's like to be in a car driven by a drunk driver (an onboard computer delays the steering and braking actions in accordance with the delayed reactions of a drunk driver). And there are public service announcements from Edward James Olmos and Aretha Franklin. In short, The MADD Safe-Drinking Video includes a lot more information than The Last Dance. Plus, it costs--even taking into account the "special introductory price"--$272.55 less.Mara's Breathtaking Story, a dramatic vignette like The Last Dance, follows the transformation of Mara, a teenage smoker who gradually breaks the habit. Unlike the non-narrated The Last Dance, however, Mara's voice-over narration provides a context for what we're watching. Swayed by her friends, enjoying the irritation it causes adults, and continuing the smoking tradition established by both her grandmother and mother, Mara justifies her habit, until she starts noticing side effects. Like being short-winded while running, losing her ability to taste food, and being told her hair smells like an ashtray by another student. The final straw comes in a somewhat melodramatic ending in which Mara's grandmother dies. a quality production, with good writing, Mara's Breathtaking Story is an effective peer counseling kind of program; but it's neither as informative, nor as reasonably priced as Diary of a Teenage Smoker (VL-7/93) which costs $49.95 as opposed to 300 bucks (and, for that matter, is much more hip, stylistically).The Last Dance is not recommended, and Mara's Breathtaking Story--despite the fact that it's a reasonably good video--is not a necessary purchase since there are better and less expensive programs available. The MADD Safe-Driving Video is highly recommended. (R. Pitman)
The Last Dance; The Madd Safe-Driving Video; Mara's Breathtaking Story
(1994) 18 min. $325 (special introductory price of $292.50). Gerald T. Rogers Productions. PPR. Color cover. Vol. 9, Issue 5
The Last Dance; The Madd Safe-Driving Video; Mara's Breathtaking Story
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
Order From Your Favorite Distributor Today: