Kai, l'autostoppeur à la hachette

Bon film !

Bon film !

Bon film !

Bon film !

Bon film !

source: The Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker

So this is a much ado about nothing situation. All this people who are trying to make a buck off of this neuro-atypical kid are disgusting. Of course they pretend to be looking out for him and to want to make him rich, but they could not care less about his well being. They just want to ride the wave of his viral moment. That is not a surprise. In fact nothing is a surprise in this doc, and all the moments that are presented as cliffhangers and mindblowing events are so predictable and ultimately uninteresting, because from the point of view of the ugly people trying to exploit him. If it had been a doc about him, his mental health, the relationship between that and his life choices, or the absence of such relationship, it would have been a much better doc. But the bottom line for this is "we could have made so much money out of him, but he is troubled for real, not just to entertain us."

Here's yet another real life instance where internet and media virality doesn't equate to anything. Kai became famous as a life-saving internet hero, but just a few months later, he turned into the villain by beating a man to death. From the 90-minute material we have, it seems pretty obvious that he's got serious mental health issues, which gets covered up in the name of his supposedly heroic act and that there's a goofy charm to him. Also, he notably plays the guitar. The media, alongside the reality television industry, only fueled his quirks and goofs. A quick listen to anyone who was with him for at least 24 hours or more, can tell you that there was something clearly off about the guy. His philosophical Facebook statuses were also a clear indication. Kai's mother's statements also appear to be questionable, and by her demeanor, it looked like she was relieved that she was no longer responsible for Kai's actions. To think so much of this problematic behaviour is formulated during childhood only makes matters worse. I wish this piece covered Kai as a person more, and not the internet-celebrity bits which are easily available elsewhere. P. S - Why not let us in on the phonecall that Jessob gets from Kai while he's in prison? That would've made for the most interesting tail-end.

This documentary is heartbreaking and deeply disturbing to watch, but certainly not in the ways that it was intended to be. It was clear from the get-go that Kai was delusional and needed psychological help. Instead, the media sharks descended upon him and took advantage of him because they thought they could make money off of him. What if they had looked at him as a human being with a horrendous childhood who was desperately in need of help, instead of only seeing him as their next cash cow? Would things have ended differently? They had an opportunity to really make a difference in this kid's life and they squandered it. This isn't an indictment of Kai so much as it is an indictment of the bloodthirsty media who exploited him. And this documentary doesn't even have the self awareness to see that. Shame on every single person who chose to ignore the warning signs because they were so focused on the dollar signs! Disgusting!

Interesting how the chubby sports reporter with the front tuck is now wearing thousand + dollar suits and spray tans while Kai rots in prison, yet he makes himself out to be some kind of Hero. Perfect example of how the media monster will chew you up and spit you out as long as it's for their own benefit. This could have been interesting but it simply hi-lights how shallow and self centered people can be. This guy is still making money off of Kai and what is he doing to help him? Getting his suits pressed and cleaning his pool? It's just sad. That dude needs to go to hell for this. Nuff said. Truly sad.