At the Ready

Released Oct 22, 2021

1 hr. 36 min.

Documentary

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90%

30 Reviews

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Ten miles from the Mexican border, students at Horizon High School in El Paso, Texas, are enrolling in law enforcement classes and joining a unique after-school activity: the criminal justice club. Through mock-ups of drug raids and active-shooter takedowns, they inch closer to their desired careers in Border Patrol, policing, and customs enforcement. We follow Mexican American students Kassy and Cesar and recent graduate Cristina as they navigate the complications inherent in their chosen path and discover their choices may clash with the values and people they hold most dear.

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Premiered May 07

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Critics Consensus

At the Ready takes the audience inside a fascinating -- and often unsettling -- collision between politics, education, and law enforcement.

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dave d

Maisie Crow's sophomore venture into filmmaking is a clear indication that sometimes you grow up and become someone different. The film's focus is three high school kids from El Paso who all want careers in Law Enforcement. The problem with the documentary is the focus. One kid's story pops. The other is ok and the third is wedged in. The teachers of the students and their backstory is glossed over, but what we learn is generally fascinating. There are moments that are depressing and moments that are illuminating, but the story rings true. When we get police officers we're not getting our best, we're getting bullies and people that seek out power and a gun. The training is all wrong, and this film accidentally hits that note, but doesn't capitalize. A mixed bag, but mostly positives. Final Score: 8/10

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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At the Ready: Trailer 1

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Monica Castillo

RogerEbert.com

A dose of sobering insight.

Rated: 3.5/4

Oct 25, 2021

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Carlos Aguilar

TheWrap

Plays like a frightening but necessary exposé of state-sanctioned copaganda targeting young people from marginalized backgrounds to groom them into instruments of their very oppressor.

Oct 22, 2021

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Adrienne Hunter

Austin Chronicle

Crow is so successful in patiently capturing subjects like Kassy, placed in extremely difficult positions, in a grounded manner that illustrates how nuanced the contexts of these issues are.

Rated: 3.5/5

Oct 21, 2021

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Vadim Rizov

Filmmaker Magazine

That somewhat rote humanizing is no match for the grim framework in which the kids' personal/political lives are processed—every time the film's core premise cuts through the character scaffolding, it's startling.

Nov 29, 2022

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Ema Sasic

Next Best Picture

"At the Ready" doesn't capture all the details, but it still does show an interesting introspective journey.

Rated: 6/10

Jun 21, 2022

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Joanne Laurier

World Socialist Web Site

The films drama plays out against images of President Donald Trump spewing his xenophobic filth.

Apr 18, 2022

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Synopsis

Ten miles from the Mexican border, students at Horizon High School in El Paso, Texas, are enrolling in law enforcement classes and joining a unique after-school activity: the criminal justice club. Through mock-ups of drug raids and active-shooter takedowns, they inch closer to their desired careers in Border Patrol, policing, and customs enforcement. We follow Mexican American students Kassy and Cesar and recent graduate Cristina as they navigate the complications inherent in their chosen path and discover their choices may clash with the values and people they hold most dear.

Director: Maisie Crow
Executive Producer: Roberto Grande, Justin Lacob, Mimi Pham, Davis Guggenheim, Jonathan Silberberg, Nicole Stott, Fred Grinstein, Steve Golin, Kathryn Everett, Tony Hsieh, Bryn Mooser, Max Kabat
Distributor: Gravitas Ventures
Production Co: XTR, Anonymous Content, Ford Foundation - Just Films, Concordia Studio
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 22, 2021, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 22, 2021

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