The Bridge

[SouthernYankee]

I have been haunted by this movie since I saw the trailer for it last week... it's a "documentary" about suicides off of the Golden Gate Bridge, which includes footage of people contemplating...and jumping. They captured more than 2 dozen deaths within the year they were there filiming. I can't seem to get it out of my head, I've read a few articles about it and I'm not sure if I'm saddened or angry about it.

I also read the story about the young man, Kevin Hines, who jumped and was one of only a couple of dozen people to survive the fall since the bridge opened in the 1930's.

The director was on a local radio show (Opie and Anthony) here in the NY/NJ area last week, and Kevin Hines did a call-in about his story as well... then it was on 20/20.

Has anyone actually seen this? I'll post the trailer for it if anyone's interested, but please be warned that it might be a little disturbing...

http://www.tribecafilmfestival.org/tixSYS/2006/filmguide/event_np_trailer.php?EventNumber=1903

 

[90K]

You know I saw this the other night and to be honest WTF is really going on here? I mean people taking pictures of jumpers and I know heckling as well, that is sick. I guess this hits home with me because I have to cross this 2 lane bridge everyday and we had a jumper the other night and 12 hours later they found the body about 4 miles away from the jump point. Of course we don't have the nice walkways like the GG does so it shut traffic down and to get home I had to drive an aditional 45 miles to get home. I guess I don't feel you are really helping to understand people and habits that lead to jumping. I would think you could see trend of the typical troubled soul prior to jumping. But I say acting like it doesn't happen isn't the answer either. Sometimes there are subjects that are way too much information....

 

[Nienna]

I was thinking the same thing, 90K. Why are people FILMING this instead of running down there and trying to STOP the jumpers! Are we THAT calloused as a people that we don't even CARE when someone is trying to commit suicide?

 

[SouthernYankee]

I was thinking the same thing, 90K. Why are people FILMING this instead of running down there and trying to STOP the jumpers! Are we THAT calloused as a people that we don't even CARE when someone is trying to commit suicide?

according to the director, they did "save" 4 people, I think they said it was 4 people... but the cameras aren't set up on the bridge directly, from what I understand they're set up at two points elsewhere and simply focused on particular spots. They had the Bridge Patrol/Authorities on speed dial on the cellphones though.

I think "we" would have to see the entire movie to get the jest of it , I heard it's powerfully haunting, but the families of the victims were interviewed and gave their approval to add the stories of their departed into the film, so I guess it depends on the viewer as to the interpretation of the film, whether or not it's what people have referred to it as a "snuff film" or that of awareness? :huh:

 

[90K]

Nienna, I reckon in our world we've witnessed faces of death and those are very graphic and hey this is pretty cool.....Saying that in a selfish way. I thought of the people who would be seen and I'd feel conviction to make an effort. They might be looney as hogans goat, but they are humans. I don't like everyone but even in my most outrageous fit of anger I'd try and prevent that jump if I could. Personally I don't think this guy should have been given the right to express this stuff to the media, but should have been tried for accessory to murder. Since he fimed it and had others filming as well. Since I know it would not have held up in court due to SF liberal ways it would have been a vain attempt to send a message for what it would be worth.

 

[SouthernYankee]

Nienna, I reckon in our world we've witnessed faces of death and those are very graphic and hey this is pretty cool.....Saying that in a selfish way. I thought of the people who would be seen and I'd feel conviction to make an effort. They might be looney as hogans goat, but they are humans. I don't like everyone but even in my most outrageous fit of anger I'd try and prevent that jump if I could. Personally I don't think this guy should have been given the right to express this stuff to the media, but should have been tried for accessory to murder. Since he fimed it and had others filming as well. Since I know it would not have held up in court due to SF liberal ways it would have been a vain attempt to send a message for what it would be worth.

I think we live in a world of not wanting to get involved, sadly... some of the interviews I've heard about this movie had people thinking "well what if they pull me over with them..." type of mindset. The director said a few of the victims appeared to be "normal" people walking on the bridge, just before, one guy was on his cellphone laughing and joking, and then he just hung up and leaped... so according to his footage, it's not always a neon sign for some people... the survivor, Kevin, said he was on the bridge for like 90 minutes fighting the voices in his head that were telling him to jump, and if one person, just one, had showed they cared, he might not have done it... one woman came up to him, a German tourist and asked if he'd take her picture, he said (to himself) something like "don't you see the tears running down my face?" and he took the picture, and ran and leaped off... so according to reports, it wasn't always so obvious that someone was jumping...

You'd like to think you'd help if put in that situation, but honestly, I'm not sure if my mind would click so quickly to be able to... so many people passing on that bridge, you can't possibly take in every face and every situation... after being in big cities like NYC, you tend to just tune out people around you and concentrate on just getting to where you need to go... Most of the people on the GG Bridge are tourists, checking out the scenery off of/around the bridge, taking pictures or whatever, not thinking about the fact that the person 5 feet away is about to end their life.

Does that make sense?

 

[90K]

Indeed being up in the city with nine million people of all walks of life it is easy to become hardened and yet protective against things. I was refering to walking across the bridge and seeing someone about to make a drastic decision, I may try and see if I could prevent it. But reviewing the video it looked like many of the folk were jumping could have been prevented from jumping at that very time.

 

[SouthernYankee]

Indeed being up in the city with nine million people of all walks of life it is easy to become hardened and yet protective against things. I was refering to walking across the bridge and seeing someone about to make a drastic decision, I may try and see if I could prevent it. But reviewing the video it looked like many of the folk were jumping could have been prevented from jumping at that very time.

yeah, those images in the trailer looked like it was obvious, but I noticed not a lot of people were even around in those shots... also, if I'm not mistaken, that girl in the "hoodie" was one of the ones who was saved by a bystander... a man actually caught her by her hoodie and yanked her back as she jumped.

they did capture a few bystander rescues but for the most part, from what I understand, there was just no time... they were not filming on the bridge itself, they didn't have direct "let me run to them quickly" access... and they did call the contacts they did have...