Andrew Jenks, Room 335

To get to know the world he lives in, college kid Andrew Jenks doesn't take off to remote, exotic places with a backpack, but instead decides to go and stay in a retirement home in Florida for a few weeks. There, he gets acquainted with Tammy, Libby, Dotty and Bill, all of whom are past their prime. These few weeks turn into a valuable experience for Jenks, who approaches the elderly people with an open mind and takes a close look at the less cheerful sides of old age, including decay and dependence. The backdrop to all this is a society that is so obsessed with youthful vitality, it will stop at nothing to suppress the inevitable decline. In response to the question of why the younger generation puts the older one away in homes, one resident explains that "they can't be bothered with us." Room 335 is at once a coming-of-age docudrama, a sociological experiment and an account of the goings-on in a subculture, and it is never overly polished or dull. Although the old people spend their twilight years making mischievous jokes about sex, playing bingo and laughing about oxygen deficiency when the power goes out, death and disease are never that far away. A good mood is not always part of their daily routine - after all, mental and physical deterioration are no picnic. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)