Educational Media Reviews Online

In this film, Bill Moyers interviews two families year by year from 1991 to the present. Though the United States has enjoyed the longest economic expansion in its history, not all have enjoyed its prosperity. Older archetypical manufacturing jobs with salaries, pension plans, and benefits are disappearing. The film begins during the recession of 1990-1991 when the fathers of two Milwaukee families lose their high paying manufacturing jobs.

The film explores how these two families made sacrifices, took risks, and maneuvered in order to stay afloat financially. Many times, family members took low paying part time jobs, which seem so abundant. This is perhaps the strongest point of the film. The wage structure of middle class jobs in America has devolved into a larger lot of lower paying part time jobs without benefits. The film also shows how the financial strife affected the families' relationships - husband/wife, parent/child, and sibling relationships.

The film is sobering, and at times poignant, but does not receive a recommendation. While the progress of the families compels the audience to continue watching, the film would benefit from substantial editing. Also, one may find difficulty sympathizing with one of the families, who owned an enormous aquarium, whose parents smoked, and whose children wore team logo baseball hats, in the midst of tightening their budgets. The film accomplishes it goal of demonstrating (1) the underbelly of this boom economy and (2) its impact on middle class families.