Trouble the Water

Trouble the Water is the second Katrina documentary I’ve seen this year. The Axe in the Attic was not nearly as good as this one. I was a bit reluctant to go because I’ve had hurricane burnout lately, but this was worth seeing. Trouble the Water starts out with some homemade videos of a stranded couple that couldn’t make it out. They were stuck in the 9th Ward. You see them getting ready, then holing up in the house, then moving to the attic when the levee breaks a few blocks away from their home and their house fills with water, then escaping to even higher ground, then finally leaving New Orleans, and coming back years later. It goes astray with some too-obvious, too-easy critiques of the political bumbling toward the end. The criticism is well-deserved, of course, but not nearly as interesting as seeing their stories unfold, seeing them meet strangers and help each other out, and how they find strength in each other and in their faith. The protagonists are pretty lovable. Go see it in your neighborhood.