God Grew Tired of Us (2006)

Watched this once and was touched then watched it with my 10 year old daughter,heavy maybe but that is why I wanted to watch it with her. Having a dialogue with her I learned so much more than when I watched by myself. Having to answer questions like "why would this happen" and "why can't it be fixed" made this a richer experience, though I struggled for answers. I saw how unaware I am and wanted to change that. Children can sure put a mirror on you. As she watched the struggles 'The Lost Boys' I saw her tear up, laugh and my favorite- understand. One event where the Ritz crackers and milk go in the blender, I thought was strange and then realized why it would happen,but it took me aback for a moment. Child-matter of fact- "they must be doing that so it is more like things they have eaten before" She loved when they had the celebration outside of the apartment and course when John was reunited with his mother. She hated the way that much of the community treated the newcomers(scared when in a group for example,though wouldn't you want to be around those you know) and felt uncomfortable with the first scenes in the grocery store.I wish we could all take a lesson from children and those featured in the film and be curious,empathetic, and appreciative , because I think we forget sometimes.

Christopher Quinn has compiled a wonderful documentary about three Lost Boys of the Sudanese Genocide who immigrate to America to find new lives. He cites the history and how they became the lost boys through the systematic genocide in Sudan and how they migrated to refugee camps first in Ethiopia and second in Kenya. While they are there for years, they form unforgettable bonds with each other and rely on each other as family. When they immigrate to the United States settling in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Syracuse, New York, they must make adjustments and adaptation unlike anything before. They appreciate their new lives and the advantages offered to them without complaint about doing any job no matter what it is but they are not without racking guilt for those thousands left behind and for their families whose fate may not be known. Despite it all, you don't see any tears about their situation but just the guilt that they are lucky and they plan to give back to those back home.

The film is about the lives of Lost Boys after they came to U.S.A.. The most of them struggled with the life style in the unfamiliar country, but they eventually got through a tough time and tried to find the way of helping their home country, Sudan. The movie is not only touching but funny, their reaction for the life in the developed country was absolutely worth to watch. and I learned a lot of things from their way of thinking.I assumed the film maker wanted to telll us the difficulities of the Lost Boys after they left their own country and how the situation of Sudan is bad. However the movie got me thinking the other topic, happiness. I vividly remember when one of the Lost Boys felt depressed for his life in U.S.A. and said "When I was in our country, I have a lot of time to talk to family, friends, and even stranger, and we were happy. But in here, U.S.A., everybody just work, work, work, and they don't have enough time of communication." What is the happiness is different among the people, but like he said, it is also true many people in developed country work too hard and forget why they work in the first place.

Just saw this at Sundance. Truly, an excellent, humane look at immigrant/refugee assimilation in the United States. The parts where the boys discover electricity, cars, and supermarkets are funny as hell. The parts where the boys question whether people are better off in the U.S. or Africa are poignant and revealing of our luxuries and ignorance.The film briefly covers the history of the mid-80s civil war in Sudan, and the subsequent exodus of young Sudanese men and boys into a refuge camp in Kenya. It focuses on the first four years of the lucky few "lost boys" who are offered refuge in the U.S.By far, my favorite part, is the film's effective portrayal of these young men as articulate, intelligent beings. It's too easy for us to create a stereotypical picture of Africa in our minds. This film blows all of my previous conceptions away.Immediately after seeing this at Sundance, someone wrote a $25,000 check to help one of the main character's projects. If I had the money, I would have done the same.