The Hamptons (2002– ) User Reviews

It was abominable -- a disgrace (especially from an award-winning documentarian!)

[pam180 · 1/10 · 8 June 2002]

To Barbara Kopple - With all the hype and all the expectation, "The Hamptons" was terrible. Perhaps you were influenced by ABC to create a "Reality TV" program of tacky, low class kids, thinking about nothing more than getting lucky. But what a woefully limited picture you painted.

Of course there are tacky people in the Hamptons, as there are everywhere. But where was the rich tapestry of 'locals' and weekenders? Where was the interplay of writers and musicians, the artists and supporters of the arts? Where were the shopkeepers and housekeepers and working people who have made the Hamptons their home? Where were the immigrant workers -- the lawn mowers and day laborers --building a life here? Where were the long time residents, the old time families? Where were the images of the beautiful towns that make this part of the world so special?

Where was any semblance of the richness and beauty and natural magic and light and relationships that make the Hamptons special? OK, throw in some sex and violence to help sell the thing. But how could you completely miss the essence, the heart of this place?

Happily, viewership was as dismal as the show. But what a shame that you didn't use your talents to produce a piece that reflected your abilities -- and the real world of the Hamptons.

An enjoyable trip down memory lane.

[MsFB · 8/10 · 6 July 2002]

I think Barbara hit the nail on the head with this documentary. I grew up on Long Island, in Suffolk County, near the boonies of Patchogue as Neva called that area. The myth of "The Hamptons" is something you learn about from birth and this documentary captured every facet of it. Yes, there are festivals and restaurants and high culture in the Hamptons and the East End in general that were left out of the documentary. So were other things. When I take friends home to visit, we try to visit a vineyard or two. You didn't see any of those in the documentary, even though one of the biggest is in Southampton! The reason we saw what we did in this documentary is that the people making a bee-line for the Hamptons every Friday (causing the traffic jams) are more like the stereo-typical LI-male Josh and his friends than the more cultural oriented crowd, unfortunate but true. His shallow behavior was embarrassing. I hope America realizes that the majority of Gen-X males are NOT like him. But, I'm not here to pass judgment on him or the husband-hungry matrimonial lawyer whose name I can't remember.

Regardless, it's a right of passage for an 18 to 29 yr old to get a summer house in the Hamptons. I missed out on that by moving to PA after college. However, I identified most with Angela out of all the people in the documentary, so I probably didn't miss that much. It wouldn't have been my cup of tea. The times I did go out to the clubs it felt like an awful lot of money wasted. I've decided to save this tape and I'm going to watch it any time I get home sick. It highlights all things that I truly love about Long Island and everything I hate at the same time. It's a true dichotomy for me. You can take the girl out of Long Island, but you can't take Long Island out of the girl.

Bottom Line: Enjoy this film for what it is, not what you think it should have been.

Don't Shoot the Messenger!

[Jim-37 · 19 June 2002]

Judging from the local outrage Barbara Kopple hit a nerve!

I, however, thought her Hamptons film was eloquent, witty, and deeply felt. Considering it was made for network television, it is a remarkable tour de force: a rapid, accurate portrait of a prodigiously complex locale that focuses intently on the myth that distorts it.

Kopple did not make a film about the East End, or the South Fork, or the Fish's Tail, or the blessed land of the Dongan Patents, or Bonac, or the ancestral home of the storied Shinnecocks and Montaukets, or any of the other colorful and historic facets of this part of Long Island. Her subject was "The Hamptons." The truth does hurt.

"The Hamptons" are where you go to prove yours is bigger. "The Hamptons" are about getting your picture in the magazine before the end of the season; finding a potential husband who has "the right height, eyes, eyelashes, all his hair. And he's Jewish!"; where "people are already worried what to wear to the funeral." "The Hamptons" are where you stage white weddings in the style of the Artist Formerly Known as Puff Daddy.

In a summer of unusual drama, Kopple and her crew were ubiquitous: they were on the scene at Conscience Point for the Lizzie Grubman accident almost immediately, and covered Jeff Salaway's fatal accident before the sun rose.

The most remarkable thing about the film is that Kopple was able to sketch the reality that supports The Hamptons so effectively. Ken Brown, Marilee Foster, Tracie Hotchner, Pam Kern, Nancy Atlas and so many other real people punctuate the film constantly to remind us that "The Hamptons" have an alter ego that is human scale.

Perhaps the defining characteristic of the area is its complexity: so many levels of reality and fantasy merge there. Kopple's "4-hour miniseries" actually amounts to maybe 2:40 of elapsed film time. This is not an in-depth 13-part PBS series, it is a quick network sketch. I think she did a remarkable job delineating the numerous elements of the East End culture.

Reports are that Kopple and her crew shot over 400 hours of tape for this show. That is not an unusual shooting ratio for a documentary. But I'll bet - considering Kopple's proven talent - that you could cut a five- or ten-hour film from the footage, and it would be even more intriguing.

Does she spend too much time with the young folks? Sure. Why? First, that gives ABC the kind of show they were looking for. Second, their rapacious parents - a much more dangerous force - have learned not to shoot off their mouths in front of a camera (well, some of them have). She lets Polo represent the older generation.

Steven Gaines is the lead character in this film. Although Kopple gets in a plug for Gaines's book, 99 percent of the audience for the show doesn't know that he wrote "Philistines at the Hedgerow," the best recent book about "The Hamptons."

Perhaps that was her great mistake. Interviewing Gaines doesn't fit the cinéma vérité style. If Gaines had provided the context at the beginning perhaps the point of view would have been clearer.

But, then, who would want to watch a "reality miniseries" entitled "Philistines at the Hedgerow"?

Fabulous!

[jaqisays · 10/10 · 24 October 2003]

BRILLIANT! Incredibly well made, I would LOVE to see the footage that didn't make the final show.

I hope this will be available on DVD (with LOTS of extras) I would watch it over and over.

Does anyone know...

[dstar500 · 10/10 · 14 January 2009]

Where can I obtain a copy of this series? I really enjoyed it in 2002 and would love to watch it again. I would be interested in either a VHS or DVD version. I'll even take a used copy! Some of the featured people have gone on to achieve fame (infamy?) since the original airing. I remember a young Paris and Nicky Hilton. I am curious to see who else was unfamiliar to me then, but no longer today. The summer of 2001 was an innocent time, after the 9-11 attacks, things certainly changed. I like the way the documentary captured the innocence and fun of the summer, but also included September 11 and just after. I think it will be interesting to watch the movie again seven years later.

My first cousin , loved it.

[zazufl8 · 9/10 · 29 August 2006]

I happen to be Stevn Gaines first cousin. WE were very close growing up even thou he was much older than I am. Sadly his mom ( my moms sister passed away from Lou Ghergis disease and for some reason my cousin disassociated himself from his family. I have fond memories of Steven from visiting him in his Greenich Village Brownstone to his house in Wainscott. He was the golden grandson. The first grandchild and he actually filmed a movie at my grandparents home on Long Island . Forgot the people who were in it but it was exciting for I was only a young teenager. It was very odd looking at my cousin on screen. People who saw it called me up and could not believe the resemblance between he and I. We both took after our grandmothers side of the family. Funny but in the movie Steven Drove a Saab convertible. I have the same one, same color etc. Truly enjoyed the movie and having lived on the Island and visiting the Hamptons often it was a trip down memory lane. I now live in South East Florida not far from South Beach. I wish him nothing but the best of luck.