Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Ghosts of Cité Soleil (Asger Leth: Denmark/USA, 2006)

I understand why this film is very difficult for some people. It is simply a story of gang warfare in an environment of extreme poverty and shifting political loyalties. There is no ultimate truth that will uplift the people in the film or the viewers of the film. For the Haitians depicted in the film there is no right way of living in the sense of a "safe" person mentality (the mentality/reality of people who live in safe environments). For these people there is no way out and so there is no compromise/alternative. I commend the makers of this film for their documentation of the voices of this particular community who are involved in committing violent acts in a country that is consumed by violence.

This film should be viewed by everyone who is concerned about violence that springs up in the midst of poverty, no matter where that poverty may be (hello Americans, when you wonder about the violence of our own places, think about the systemic roots of that violence). Violence is not without reason! These people have a need for respect, they have family, they want the same things that every human wants/desires. If they don't care because they have no future... what do you expect them to do with their lives? This is not only a film about Haiti, but about any environment in the world that produces the hopeless conditions that these people face.

--Michael Benton

No comments: