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      Warrior of Light

      Released Sep 12, 2003 1h 34m Documentary List
      83% 6 Reviews Tomatometer This documentary profiles Yvonne Bezerra de Mello, a socialite turned social activist who runs safe houses for homeless Brazilian street children. Yvonne becomes invested in her work after police kill eight homeless youths in 1993. Working daily in some of Rio de Janeiro's toughest slums, Yvonne uses innovative techniques to reach out to children coping with poverty, AIDS and absent parents, while fighting hostile Brazilian attitudes toward the poor. Read More Read Less

      Critics Reviews

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      V.A. Musetto New York Post Heartbreaking film. Rated: 3/4 Sep 12, 2003 Full Review Stephen Holden New York Times This remarkable woman has no messianic illusions, despite her celebrity. Rated: 3/5 Sep 11, 2003 Full Review Edward Guthmann San Francisco Chronicle When it sticks to Bezerra de Mello, who's a genuine heroine despite her joking disavowals of her importance, it's riveting. Rated: 3/4 Sep 3, 2003 Full Review Maria Garcia Film Journal International The filmmaker tramps from one indistinguishable favela to another in a mind-numbing show-and-tell of de Mello's work. Sep 20, 2003 Full Review Maitland McDonagh TV Guide De Mello's dedication is inspiring enough to speak for itself. Rated: 2.5/5 Sep 11, 2003 Full Review Jeffrey M. Anderson Combustible Celluloid A powerful film. Rated: 3/4 Sep 3, 2003 Full Review Read all reviews

      Audience Reviews

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      Audience Member She is bold, outspoken and charismatic, and you'll never forget her. The film is really a story of a hero: Yvonne Bezerra de Mello. The documentary showcases Project Uere, a humanitarian organization created by de Mello, an upper class artist of gaining an almost mythical stature in Brazil and elsewhere. Dedicated to helping the street children of Rio, Project Uere was created after the savage and widely publicized massacre of Rio street children in 1993. Totally unstaged, "Warrior of Light" shows how Brazil suffers from the wide gap between the rich and the poor, based on class and color. When she could easily retire into her very wealthy enclaves, de Mello reaches out and literally hugs the most powerless victims of abuse and neglect: children. In the process, many of her upper class counterparts ostracize her. Nevertheless, she feeds, clothes, teaches, washes, scolds and protects children who have little knowledge of what "love and security" mean. Like PIXOTE, CITY OF GOD, and BUS 174 (which also featured de Mello in an interview segment), this is a good social responsibility presentation that focuses on Brazilian children. See it and share this inspirational film with people of any age, even though there are some brief grizzly murder scenes. This film was once very hard to obtain in the USA, and it is wonderful that it is becoming more widely available. However, there needs to be a more detailed follow up of developments regarding the project and children involved, like the "7 Up" series Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/25/23 Full Review Audience Member A Powerful documentary...about humanity...or lack their of... Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review Audience Member Enjoy watching documentaries worth watching Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Movie Info

      Synopsis This documentary profiles Yvonne Bezerra de Mello, a socialite turned social activist who runs safe houses for homeless Brazilian street children. Yvonne becomes invested in her work after police kill eight homeless youths in 1993. Working daily in some of Rio de Janeiro's toughest slums, Yvonne uses innovative techniques to reach out to children coping with poverty, AIDS and absent parents, while fighting hostile Brazilian attitudes toward the poor.
      Director
      Monika Treut
      Screenwriter
      Monika Treut
      Distributor
      New Yorker Films
      Production Co
      Warner Brothers/Seven Arts
      Genre
      Documentary
      Original Language
      German
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Sep 12, 2003, Original
      Box Office (Gross USA)
      $2.7K
      Runtime
      1h 34m