Saturday, January 23, 2010

1 train trip, 2 documentaries, [nearly] 3 hours each

1. Sex Traffic [2004]: recommended by my Refugee course coordinator, it's been one of the toughest films I've seen in the recent past.
The plot outline -although well and comprehensively written- couldn't possibly reveal all there is to this story:

Boston based Kernwell Industries is an American defense contractor. One of those contracts is to deploy 3,000 peacekeepers to the International Peacekeeping Coalition's work in the Balkans. Because of the near epidemic problem of sex trafficking of young Balkan women, Kernwell has decided to support the charity, Worldwide Federation Against Forced Migration. Kernwell's head of charities is Madeleine Harlsburg, the wife of the company's CEO, Tom Harlsburg. Although it does not have a pristine reputation as a good social corporate citizen, Kernwell hits a bigger public relations problem when it is learned that one of those 3,000 peacekeepers was caught trying to buy the services of a teen-aged prostitute in Sarajevo. Although not named to the media, that person is Sergeant Callum Tate, who swears he was trying to save that woman. In reality, Tate has evidence of a larger conspiracy of sex trafficking. Regardless of the truth or falsehood of accusations, some within Kernwell will do whatever they require to protect their organization's brand. Meanwhile, the Moldovan Visinescu sisters - Lena and Vara - believe they are moving to London with Vara's boyfriend Alexi to lead a better life to be able to send money back to support their mother and Lena's infant son. However, they soon learn that Alexi has instead sold them into a white slavery ring. Speak For Freedom, a London-based non-profit organization, works in many areas including monitoring sex trafficking in order to assist authorities in stopping it. Daniel Appleton, one of its employees, gets involved in trying to save the Visinescus.
[Taken from the IMDb, here.]

2. When the Road Bends: Tales of a Gypsy Caravan [2006]: a very different story, which I've nevertheless appreciated quite a bit. Though not certain who exactly recommended it to me, I recall having planned to watch it for a while now, and well, today was the day. And I was glad that it managed to [at least slightly] counterbalance the previous documentary's heavy effects.

Shot by legendary cinematographer Albert Maysles, this dynamic musical documentary follows five Gypsy bands from four countries who unite for the Gypsy Caravan as they take their show around North America for a six-week tour, astounding every audience they meet. Their musical styles range from flamenco to brass band, Romanian violin to Indian folk. And with humor and soul in their voices, they celebrate the best in Gypsy culture and the diversity of the Romani people in an explosion of song and dance.
As the film follows the amazing performances and behind-the-scenes action from the tour created by World Music Institute, we discover the real lives of these musicians. We visit Macedonia, Romania, India and Spain, meet their families and see what music brings to their lives. The tales of these characters are woven between their performances - allowing us to understand and celebrate Romani culture and the prejudice of their shared ancestry.
The "Gypsy Caravan" tour extravaganza features performances by Macedonian diva and "Queen of the Gypsies" Esma Redzepova, traditional Indian folk troupe Maharaja, Romanian Fanfare Ciocarlia, the violin wizardry of Romanian group Taraf de Haidouks and the Antonio El Pipa Flamenco Ensemble.
[as described on the IMDb, here]

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