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The Back of the World

Play trailer The Back of the World 2002 1h 29m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
75% Tomatometer 12 Reviews Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
Here are three distinct portraits of dispossessed and marginalized individuals whose lives are forgettable in their parts of the world, and yet truly unforgettable as markers of social injustice. The first segment features an 11-year-old boy forced into child labor by the economic and social conditions of his Peruvian village. The second introduces a Kurd living in exile, apart from his homeland and the imprisoned wife he'll never see again. The third segment focuses on a death-row inmate.

Critics Reviews

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Megan Turner New York Post 06/27/2002
2.5/4
An unflinching look at the world's dispossessed. Go to Full Review Leslie Camhi Village Voice 05/24/2002
What saves this deeply affecting film from being merely a collection of wrenching cases is Corcuera's attention to detail. Go to Full Review Dave Kehr New York Times 05/24/2002
2/5
The misery of these people becomes just another voyeuristic spectacle, to be consumed and forgotten. Go to Full Review B. Ruby Rich The Nation 02/25/2020
Utterly free of didacticism, The Back of the World brushes its subjects with the luminosity of an oil painting. It's impossible to exit the theater unmoved. Go to Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com 07/17/2005
2/5
Apollo Guide 05/13/2005
73/100
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The Back of the World

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Cast & Crew

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Javier Corcuera

Director

Elias Querejeta

Producer

Elias Querejeta

Writer

Javier Corcuera

Writer

Fernando León de Aranoa

Writer

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Movie Info

Synopsis Here are three distinct portraits of dispossessed and marginalized individuals whose lives are forgettable in their parts of the world, and yet truly unforgettable as markers of social injustice. The first segment features an 11-year-old boy forced into child labor by the economic and social conditions of his Peruvian village. The second introduces a Kurd living in exile, apart from his homeland and the imprisoned wife he'll never see again. The third segment focuses on a death-row inmate.
Director
Javier Corcuera
Producer
Elias Querejeta
Screenwriter
Elias Querejeta, Javier Corcuera, Fernando León de Aranoa
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Production Co
20th Century Fox
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
Spanish
Release Date (Theaters)
May 22, 2002, Limited
Runtime
1h 29m