The Boys of Baraka

R

Released Nov 30, 2005

1h 24m

Documentary

List

76%

45 Reviews

Tomatometer

87%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

This documentary follows a group of African-American parents in a violent Baltimore ghetto, who in 2002 choose to send their junior high boys to a boarding school in Kenya, believing that the children stand a better chance of a stable future in Africa than roaming Baltimore's poverty-stricken streets. Twenty boys attend, and when they return for break, the experiment seems worth the effort. However, with Kenya facing terrorist attacks, the group must assess where the greater risk lies.

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Critics Consensus

The interviewed boys are compelling subjects, but the documentary would be better if the filmmakers had provided more factual details.

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John Leonard

New York Magazine/Vulture

There are difficulties along the way, none of them slighted in this award-winning documentary, as well as a surprise at the end that's as sobering to the viewer as it is to the children.

Jan 17, 2018

Full Review

Bruce Westbrook

Houston Chronicle

It's galling to think American kids must go abroad for a chance to turn their lives around. But it's also inspiring to see the changes that are possible.

Rated: 3/4

Apr 14, 2006

Full Review

John Hartl

Seattle Times

A potent mixture of heartbreak and crushing irony.

Rated: 3/4

Mar 3, 2006

Full Review

Jorge Ignacio Castillo

IONCINEMA.com

The Boys of Baraka succeeds in breaking some stereotypes on kids living in the projects, particularly by introducing young men with the will, but not the means, to twist destiny's arm.

Rated: 3/5

Nov 21, 2020

Full Review

David Lamble

Bay Area Reporter

The Boys of Baraka should force even a hardened Bush supporter to see what phrases like "the bigotry of low expectations" and "no child left behind" translate into when subjected to the feckless lottery of the political marketplace.

May 7, 2020

Full Review

Amber Wilkinson

Eye for Film

Raw emotions, both uplifting and depressing, are captured.

Rated: 4.5/5

Jun 13, 2008

Full Review

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Audience Member

Great movie! although the school is closed now, you can tell that they really changed. It was serious at times, but also comedic. Most of the four boys from Baltimore were able to really get their lives together.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/26/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Another phenomenal documentary.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/23/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Boys of Baraka is a film; a documentary about boys trying to find their way out of social poverty that they grew up in and trying to earn an education they rightfully deserve. The film highlights a couple of boys considered ?at-risk? from Baltimore, Maryland who get a special opportunity to go to a two year school in Kenya. Baltimore is not a city known for its education. 76% of African American students in Baltimore do not graduate from high school. Most of these kids live in rural areas, where as scene in the movie, are not part of what you and I would consider an ideal society. 50% of these ungraduated students would eventually go to jail. The school in the film, The Baraka School is a private school in Kenya, where twenty students, four of which are focused on in the film (Devon, Montrey, Richard and Romesh). By the end of the film, we get to see the affects the applied learning and discipline that the Baraka School has instilled in these children. With most of the cast of the movie, the school has had an impact, mostly positive. The Baraka School gave a different atmosphere than that of a Baltimore school. At those school, teachers are not listened to and children horse around. Watching the footage of these city schools, you get the impression that no one cares, which is very disheartening for the future of these children. Baraka School proved a quiet environment, where the teachers could work one-on-one with a small amount of students, than to handle hundreds at a time. What the film also illustrates well is the culture shock that these children faced. They would refer to things as they would if they were home; city slang from across the Atlantic Ocean. They miss their parents, their other family members, their friends. What the film accomplishes is showing the differences in the children from when they were chosen for the program. They have really grown in our eyes. They not only become well-educated but matured due to the environment and friendliness given by the staff of the school. There are a few moments that stick out in my mind. One would be when the trouble-making Montrey has his moment of maturity. As a punishment, the kids had to go off school grounds to a place called the base camp, where they are told they have to do various team working activities. In this scene, Montrey is telling a kid who refused to do the activity (building a tent) to do it anyway and gives a very well articulated explanation to why he should. Montrey also has the biggest surprise at the end of the film, where it is revealed that he is basically a math genius and earns a scholarship. The ending of the film was a real shock. At the end of their first year, they go back to their homes for the summer. Back in America, they find out that because of the security threats in Kenya and the shut down on their American embassy, the Baraka School had to shut down. This was very unfortunate because at this point, as the viewer, you want to see these children move onto their second year and work hard to achieve something, to not end up on the street or knocking around in a prison. This brings up the question of what would have happened to the children if they did go back to Baraka. Would they be where they are today? The film accomplished quite a few things a good documentary should do. It presents an interesting and true premise and then gives me characters that will grow in the eyes of the viewer. The film tells of the importance of education in young children and the affects that those children my have on their social circles and on society. Boys of Baraka is a well-made and underrated documentary.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/22/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I'm so glad I finally got to watch this thought-provoking, stirring film. Initially, I questioned the method of education being introduced to the film's participants. It seemed like another social experiment by do-gooders who would eventually give up because the challenge was too demanding. Yet, I found with the public schools the way they are (underfunded/unsupported), moving to another continent for schooling offered opportunities that are mostly non-existent to children growing up in poverty in inner-city Baltimore. Removed from the daily challenges of that life, the boys of Baraka begin to flourish. In the two years they are supposed to be in Kenya, they will be safe, learn, and grow, and they will have a chance to enroll in the Baltimore high school of their choice. Two years.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/17/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Couldn't agree more. Its fascinating how this point was missed by every other review I read. This movie was an unjustified sloppily planned experiment done by outsiders disguised as a solution. Seems these kids who had already been through so much were in no way served by this experience.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Not really my cup of tea but it was cool to see the changes in the boys once they left Baltimore for Africa.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/04/23

Full Review

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Synopsis

This documentary follows a group of African-American parents in a violent Baltimore ghetto, who in 2002 choose to send their junior high boys to a boarding school in Kenya, believing that the children stand a better chance of a stable future in Africa than roaming Baltimore's poverty-stricken streets. Twenty boys attend, and when they return for break, the experiment seems worth the effort. However, with Kenya facing terrorist attacks, the group must assess where the greater risk lies.

Director: Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady
Distributor: ThinkFilm
Production Co: Loki Films
Rating: R (Some Language)
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 30, 2005, Original
Release Date (DVD): Feb 5, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA): $322.4K
Runtime: 1h 24m