Brett: A life with no arms.

Fifty years ago, now acclaimed film-director, Roger Graef, made his first documentary film, One of Them is Brett, about Brett Nielson, a boy born with no arms due to the effects of the drug thalidomide. In this new film, Graef visits Brett in Australia to catch up with his life now and to find out what his life has involved during the intervening years. He has worked as, among other things, a DJ and also run a bulldozing business. He currently lives with his partner and his two children from previous marriages and we witness several touching family scenes. We follow Brett's progress as he builds a house next door to his for his father to move into, despite reservations from his brothers. We also see him finally coming to terms with his feelings of anger towards Chemi Grunenthal, the drug company who originally licensed thalidomide in Germany. Interspersed with these current life events are clips from the original film as well as some archival material on the effects of thalidomide and the work of early campaigners to get compensation for those affected by the drug. A variety of other people from various stages in Brett's life describe him, including: his old school headmaster as well as some of his classmates, his first wife and his current physiotherapist who is helping him to deal with the wear and tear that his body is put through as he compensates for his lack of arms. We end with a moving compilation of images to the accompaniment of Brett's own music, which he has released on CD.