sapientsue Reviews

Ghosts of Cité Soleil (2006)

A documentary that actually lets the people tell the story

[9/10 · 17 August 2007]

I saw this tonight (8/17/07)at Facets in Chicago and was handed propaganda by American people who are apparently jumping on another cause that blames America for everything. This film did not appear to have an agenda at all to me. I actually was wishing it had a little more of one because I kept getting confused about who was good and who was bad. There is a reason I was confused, because they didn't portray anyone as completely good or bad. The place seems a mess.

The people handing me the papers definitely had an agenda just like some of the reviewers on here. In fact one of the papers I got has word for word the same thing as one of the reviewers. People yell out racist and compare the director to Leni Riffenstahl and we are supposed to think it's the film is biased??? The propaganda against the film is what seems to be blatantly biased. It is unquestionably pro Aristide.

I don't understand how anyone can call this film racist. That seems to be a typical ploy to get people emotional and disregard any facts. I didn't see any of the Hatian people as evil thugs, I saw them as victims and survivors used and manipulated by corrupt governments.

This film maker did not appear to be for deposing Aristide at all. I got the impression that both leaders were corrupt which is most likely the case. It definitely looked like the new government had the brothers killed unjustly. The brothers were not shown as completely good or bad either. We see their deplorable living conditions and their bones prominent on their scrawny bodies as they showered and know that they are desperate.

I think this film maker did an excellent job because no one came out blameless. Some reviewers on here want you to believe that Aristide was blameless and that the gangsters were made up, despite actual footage of gangsters attacking demonstrators. Even if Aristide didn't order it, he should have at least gone after the gangs.

El próximo oriente (2006)

Touching feel good romantic comedy

[10/10 · 26 May 2007]

This is my first review only because I am bothered by the low rating. This was one of the best romantic comedies I have seen and I see a lot of movies. The ending is predictable, but so what, all romantic comedies are. The people who rated it low are probably not big on romantic comedies in general. This movie was so touching on many levels. It's the kind of movie that you walk out of feeling really good. The story is about a man who is jealous of his womanizing brother's ability to attract decent women. He takes pity on one of his brothers victims who is a Muslim woman with a strict father. He tries to help her and make up for his brother's indiscretions and ends up immersing himself in their culture. I loved that it gave a beautiful portrayal of a Muslim family. I learned some really cool things like how they give 2.5% of their earnings to someone in need (directly) and how they don't believe in carrying debt. This is not an award winning type cinematic masterpiece, but I gave it 10 stars because it's fun and has the ability to actually change your mood.

Edit: - I noticed that all the other reviews were from 2006, so I should mention that I saw this in April 2007 at the 23rd Chicago Latino Film Festival at Facets.