Review of Children Underground (2001) by Butch H — 21 Dec 2007

This intimate documentary follows five homeless children in Romania, where the collapse of communism has led to a life on the street for 20,000 children. From a 16-year-old girl who runs her gang with a mixture of brutality and compassion, to a small, intelligent, and remarkably articulate 12-year-old boy, these children seem at first feral and frightening--yet over the course of the movie their loneliness, desperation, and glimpses of hope will transform how you perceive them.

Make no mistake: this is difficult watching. As Children Underground explores the meager state resources to support these children and follows some of the children back to their difficult families, the scope of the problem becomes larger and more irresolvable.

But this documentary offers an unblinking and deeply compassionate insight into the extremes of human existence; you will not forget it easily.