Who Took Johnny

Dir: David Beilinson, Michael Galinsky, Suki Hawley

2014

****

I knew nothing about Johnny Gosch before watching 2014’s Who Took Johnny as his story was never big news in the UK. However, the dangers of child molestation and predatory paedophiles did become a topic that was more widely discussed. I remember as a child that these men were simply known as ‘Dirty old men’ and were largely ignored and any crime swept under the carpet. I knew that in America they print pictures of missing people on milk cartons, I just didn't know it was because of Johnny Gosch. Many historic cases involving well known celebrities and politicians made the news just before this documentary was made so perhaps it was quite timely. While the film concentrates on the Johnny Gosch case in particular, it only really scratches the surface as far as the Franklin cover up goes. It is incredibly disturbing to learn now just how easy it was for rich and powerful men to kidnap young boys from suburbia and sell them as sex slaves. The police did very little, bringing in to question whether they were under orders from someone high up in their department or even higher than that. It is clear that some very powerful men were being it and still to this day they have essentially got away with it – it’s clearly still happening today. A whole way of life changed, kids could no longer go outside and play by themselves and fear became an every day part of life that corporations have taken advantage of. Gosch’s mother has tirelessly campaigned for changes in the law and searched for her son for many years and now helps others who are going through the same situations. Her actions have had a huge impact, Johnny is remembered and is thought of as the first child to be taken like this but the truth is that his mother was the first to bring an ongoing problem to the consciousness of the public. The film gets even more horrific when victim and forced predator Paul Bonacci confesses to snatching Johnny and unravels the true horror of the paedophile syndicate. I think there is more to the story not covered in the documentary but all of the important factors are covered. It really needs a separate film about Lawrence E King Jr and what is known as The Franklin Cover up. I was sickened and shocked by some of the content, even questioning whether they should have shown certain images but after giving it a lot of thought, I think it is right of the film makers to show a glimpse of the true horror so that society does not revert to turning this subject into a taboo no-go issue. The story is suspenseful, full of twists and unaccepted revelations, the film makers tell the tale systematically and in order, never once playing on the sensationalism – they didn’t need to but many a documentary has milked similar subjects, so I’m glad they kept it true and respectful. It’s a tough watch but an important subject to be aware of, not just if you’re a parent. The fact that these people are so powerful that they can cover such a thing up is beyond frightening and is truly sickening. We can beat this sort of thing with knowledge of the subject and defiance, I applaud the film makers for delivering a tasteful and balanced documentary – it just needs a follow up.