Film Forum

“Electronic heroin” and “web addiction”: that’s how Chinese authorities refer to internet activity of more than six hours a day, not related to work or studying. And they’ve built more than 400 rehabilitation camps for the (mostly) teenage boys who are “afflicted.” They arrive at Daxing Boot Camp, in a Beijing suburb, having been tricked, drugged or physically coerced by their parents.  WEB JUNKIE, an eye-opening documentary, is filmed almost entirely in this camp – a bizarre mix of prison, hospital, and military operation, with a dose of group therapy thrown in for good measure. The film suggests that Chinese officials have no idea how to cope with a younger generation that finds World of Warcraft more exciting and more real than their own lives.

USA / ISRAEL • 2014 • 79 MINS. • IN MANDARIN CHINESE WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES • KINO LORBER

Reviews

"Powerful. Revealing moments…about private, perceptual changes within families." 
– Evan Osnos, The New Yorker online

"An amazing documentary. An extraordinary glimpse inside the Chinese mental health system. (A) compassionate and rewarding film. A snapshot of a society facing internal turmoil and intense generational conflict." 
– Andrew O’Hehir, Salon

Listen