Anyone struggling with a diagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder should watch ADD & Loving It (8 p.m. today, Global). Comedian/actor Patrick McKenna wrote and hosts the hour, and reveals his personal hassles growing up with the disorder, long before any doctor knew what made him so different and so fun. The scenes of McKenna and his wife Janis filling out a questionnaire designed to detect ADD are as touching as they are humorous, as are the rapid-fire discussions with producer/director Rick Green, who also lives with ADD. The two of them spiral off in all directions talking over one another as they work out what the film should cover as it explores the adult ADD experience - the technique cleverly illustrates what goes on in an ADD-addled brain. ADD & Loving It is a brilliant look at the disorder, as funny as it is informative. Even the experts interviewed crack a few smiles and their thoughtful analysis is often presented in a rat-a-tat fashion that will go a long way to keeping the attention of ADD viewers.
Another ADD-themed documentary airs Sept. 30 on TVO's T he View from Here. The film, A Mind Like Mine, takes a more traditional point-of-view approach. It was made by Karen O'Donnell, who wanted to track how her 19-year-old son and his friend were coping with ADD as they headed off to university and adulthood. It's an emotional hour that doesn't see much to laugh about when it comes to living with ADD, but captures the honest experiences of a mother and son.
More documentary
Stranded: Andes Plane Crash Survivors (Sunday on The Passionate Eye, 10 p.m. on CBC Newsworld): This film takes an old story - the 1972 crash that led its despairing survivors to eat the flesh of those who had died - and tries to tell it a little differently. The director and cameraman are old friends of the survivors; they take them, one by one, back to the crash site and work on eliciting details that only a confidante is likely to get.