KINGDOM OF US: Powerful, Unflinching, Necessary Viewing

Kingdom of Us may be the strongest, most profound exploration of mental health, grief and trauma we have seen in a good while. The Netflix Original documentary, which premiered at London Film Festival last month, is overflowing with pain, discomfort and heartache, as a family of eight come to terms with the suicide of their father and husband, Paul Shanks. In an almost-invasive, painfully-detailed way, we journey with the Shanks family as they try to understand – and find the mechanisms to cope with – the inflicted trauma, eight years in the suffering. It is an unflinching, utterly-compelling viewing experience; a difficult watch but wholly necessary one.

Attempting to heal the wounds imposed by their loss, the Shanks are the subjects of Lucy Cohen’s fly-on-the-wall feature-length. Left emotionally-devastated, in financial ruins and over-cluttered, the three year period filming took place over shows a great deal of growth for the unique family; most, if not all, of the family are in their hormonal teenage years, complicated by their experiences with autism, and all at different stages in the journey towards understanding and recovery. The eight-strong unit look to the future by reflecting on the past, with Cohen balancing the documentary stunningly well.

There is no easy way to explore the dark themes that find themselves embedded in the Shanks’ heartbreaking story. Kingdom of Us doesn’t try to sanitise them, presenting them to audiences in their rawest, most affecting form. Warts-and-all, deeply personal and strikingly intimate, it refuses to shy away from the family fights, arguments and frank discussions that occur – and it benefits from it ten-fold.

We are seeing a real family, with real, unenviable struggles with varied, meaningful opinions and thoughts. Every successive reflection from each family members is a new rumination on the grieving process, providing an insight few could even begin to rationalise. It’s like watching your own family fight: you feel so connected to the Shanks through this documentary, which is a true sign of the piece’s incredible accomplishments.

Documentary-making at its most organic

Spliced into the present is once-happy, now-excruciating family archive footage, showing the Shanks at their (seemingly) happiest. The home movies gradually darken as new information comes to our attention, providing context to the family’s discussions; they are an insightful source to our own understanding, reinforcing the documentary’s important thematic message – things aren’t always as they seem. It’s documentary-making at its most organic, a cruel twist of fate that once-euphoric memories are now packaged to illuminate a family’s unfathomable pain – a million miles from where they are now.

All the Shanks children are articulate in their stream of thought, with brutal honesty informing their reflections and interpretation of the fateful 2007 day. Your heart breaks or soars with every admission, no more so than when a harrowing, soul-destroying piece of information comes to light mid-way through: Paul’s original intentions were far darker. It was here that I had to pause Kingdom of Us, overwrought with emotion and intensity, fully aware it my pain was nothing in comparison to the family’s reality and grief.

Cohen relationship with the family has clearly generated a great deal of trust; their willingness to share such intimate moments in their life is a clear sign of her generosity and warmth as a director. She allows the camera to linger, usually after the chaos has come to a head, surveying the damage in a reflective way; when the kids are flying off the rail, Cohen’s camera is quietly watching, picking up on the intricacies of their empire, only reinforcing their solitary – something reflected in the title of the documentary. When a birthday breakfast is interrupted by a spell of fury, Cohen stays with them long enough to see the aftermath – and there’s always a reason. So swells a warm atmosphere after the brief, turbulent disruption, examining the complexity of autism in a way I’ve never seen it portrayed on screen before. It really is bold, brave work.

Cohen condenses and stitches together three years worth of growth and eight years worth of pain into one of the most powerful documentaries of the century. Her nurturing environment allows them to reflect as safely and confidently as possible. She is a tremendous talent and I hope this stunning documentary supplies her with a platform to grow further as a filmmaker.

She also ensures that the thematic take-away from Kingdom of Us is not an entirely, overwhelmingly soul-crushing one. Surprisingly, there’s a air of optimism for the future, looking ahead to what the future holds in for the Shanks. They can face their demons knowingly and can nurture their unique differences into something positive, all facilitated by their inspiring mother. Vikie Shanks is the beating heart of this documentary; her honesty as refreshing as it is harrowing, as heart-wrenching as it is heartwarming.

In Conclusion: Kingdom of Us

Maybe it’s slightly too long and perhaps it loses focus on a handful of occasions, but Kingdom of Us is a vital watch, carrying a real sense of urgency. Everyone can take something away from this documentary because of Lucy Cohen’s considered approach and impressive execution. That she has been able to streamline copious amounts of footage – both the present and the past – and conflate them into one seamless whole is a sign of a truly talented, competent individual excelling at their craft. While she is the seamstress of this entire project, the unique family at its heart is her material.

The Shanks family are an inspiration: that they had the bravery to allow cameras to document their every emotion, discovery and breakdown, for our own understanding and to install change, is extraordinary. They have opened themselves up – still healing – to educate and influence others; I truly believe this documentary could change lives. It’s both delicate and confrontational, exploring the family unit, reactions to grief and identity with no-holds-barred access. Soul-shattering but remarkably optimistic, Netflix’s Kingdom of Us is essential viewing – one of the finest pieces of work the year has seen. I implore you to see Kingdom of Us. Talk and listen.

Do you promise me you’ll go straight to Netflix to see this stunning documentary? Let me know what you thought!

Kingdom of Us is available to stream on Netflix now.