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ANGELS IN EXILE

...is a documentary about the street kids in South Africa, it mainly follows the lives of two kids, how they first came to be living on the streets and all the horrible things that happens on the street. At the beginning of the film the boy is 12 then at the end he is 20 and the girl that they follow starts at about 11 and ended when she was 19. The film uncovers all of the issues that the street kids face, rape, stabbing, violent fights, glue sniffing, drug addictions, HIV AIDS, the police brutality and the people try to help them. The film is also follows a nonprofit group that tries to get kids back home but the street calls for the kids either because they are addicted to glue sniffing or other drugs. Also how the nonprofit group investigates into the kids pasts and what led up to and what made the kids leave home and end up on the street and if there is any where the kids can go now so they are off the danger of the street.

When you think of a very poor community in Africa what color do you think of? Not hot pink or a very happy color but more like dusty brown, grey, black and that was like, there was no purple painted walls more like old trash blowing on the ground, but seeing all of that really set the stage and the background of how poor all of these people are. During the movie it felt like we were there in South Africa with the kids and becoming friends with them but also experiencing how incredibly hard their lives are. I think it felt like we were there because the film was so up close and personal with all of the people and we were there for everything! When there was a fight on the street the camera was shaky because the person that was holding it was scared like anyone would be and that really told the vibe of what it would kind of be like there on the street.

Some of the scenes that stand out to me that most it when the main girl in the film was talking about what led to her running away from her house (SPOILER ALERT) it was because her stepfather raped her when her mom had left to go the store. Another scene that stood out a lot for me is seeing all of the kids who constantly sniff glue because it makes them feel better inside and they are addicted and can’t stop and the look on their faces just tells it all. One more scene that I remember vividly was the very last scene when the main girl is in her own little house with her boyfriend snuggling and happy.

I really recommend this film to people who want to learn about the children homeless population in South Africa. I also recomend this film to someone who is interested in helping people and who is interested in how other people live. I rate ANGELS IN EXILE a 4.5 out of 5.