Customer Reviews

Children of God

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Really don't know how or who made this documentary or what inspired the filmakers to make this doc, because THERE ARE NO EXTRAS! What makes this unique amongst slum kids, homeless kids and no hope children mill of documentaries is the back drop and the principals or the subjects themselves have such genuine and radiant personality. It also doesn't make any apologies although it gets a little poetic at times. The back drop also lends a lot of interest-a creamatorium besides the Baghmati River on the sacred ground of a Hindu Temple in Katmandu. This is a multi-layered story intervweaving the really weird death rituals in this region where food, money, clothing flowers, tears, devotion and unquestionable care is given to the dead while homeless children, iliteracy and poverty is crying out for the same attention. Ironically, it is the dead that feeds these hungry children where the necessity of hunger and survival are supported by the offerings that are made to the dead, from the food that they leave on the temple, the coins that drop on the bottom of the river, the cloths that are offered to the dead and even gold fillings that the older boys pan for. Everything that comes from the dead support these poor homeless boys. The doc centers on a little boy, 12yr old Alesh Poudel who in better circumstances could've been a movie star or just a happy go luck kid living in the suburbs. He recalls living in a nice house in the country with his family but circumstances have driven him, his alcoholic mother, glue sniffing elder brother and a little charming sister that he must care for into the crematorium. Alesh also is the narrator of the story, the filmakers offer no explainations or background about their topic because it doesn't really need it. But the film itself show the love and care that the crew has for their subject in subtle ways, the little boy makes allusion such as "I want to learn Korean so I can go with you" or "Is it nice where you are from, Korea?" so I assume this is a Korean film crew. Anyway, this is a really intelligent and well made doc that worth checking out. It tells the lives of children so far away yet they seem close because you have nothing but admiration more than pity for them.

I would like to say that this documentary is awesome!! I can see why it has won these awards and why they said it was like the documentary version of Slumdog Millionare. Watching the documentary I laughed and cried with the children, it made me want to get up and hug each and every one of them and tell them that I loved them and that there was someone out there looking out for them.

I especially liked the little girl, so cute and innnocent!!! she was very very very adorable. It touched me so much to see someone so beautiful in that situation. But the marvelous thing is that these children are so beautiful and no matter what horrible situation they were in, they always saw the bright side or as we say, the glass is half full.

It made me realize how me and my children are very priviledged and how we should appreciate everything.

Thinking about this documentary, i was expecting to see something so sad and miserable, but its actually the opposite. It's a documentary that shows the bright part of their lives, their beauty and how they appreciate life and death at the same time.

an Excellent 2 thumbs up documentary! A Must buy!!

Children of god is a fascinating documentary that follows a group of boys on their quest to survive in the slums around a sacred and holy city of Nepal.

I was very touched when I saw the lifes of the children who live beside the Baghmati River in Nepal. This area is considered the holiest and most sacred to the Nepalese people.

This documentary takes an indepth look into this holy area and the children who use it to survive. Their touching story was revealed to me by their stories and their actions. I was especially affected when I saw these boys being exposed to violence and drugs, and stealing money from the ceremony.

This documentary will open your eyes to a world you have never seen, and I wish that everyone could watch this documentary.

This documentary is incredible, and I highly recommend it to everyone. However, today I got a chance to visit Pashupatinath. Alesh and his brother David were still there, as was their mother. We didn't see the little sister because she had wandered off somewhere and they couldn't locate her right away. It was heartbreaking to see that nothing had changed except that they had grown a few inches, and Alesh's hair was down to his chin. For about $11 USD we managed to feed him and 10 or 12 of the other kids that work the river and temple for a living. It strikes me that this is less than the cost of this DVD. So, I applaud this documentary, but after you watch it, remember that as of April 26, 2009, these kids are still living this life. Being in this documentary hasn't changed things for them appreciably.

i applaud the filmmaker for this poignant and powerful piece... at first, i was worried that it would be yet another film trying to cash in on the 'slumdog millionaire' craze (which i have ambivalent feelings about, concerning that it is a sickly sweet portrayal of poverty and terrible ordeals, not unlike 'Life is Beautiful' and such fares) but this documentary is anything but that! it is a REAL, POWERFUL portrayal of slum children that strikes so many genuine chords of sorrow (and happiness!) that even with my skepticism, i couldn't help but be MOVED. thank you for this, it re-affirmed that people and places shown in realistic viewpoints can still be powerful, without multiple takes or disneyland endings.

Surprised to see a movie let alone a documentary made by a korean director that takes place outside of korea. Very impressed with the director exposing the viewer to a nepalese cultural ceremony that few have ever seen. Don't want to give anything away. Just watch it and see for yourselves.

I had tears through out the whole documentary. It was sad. This sick man and women that ppl are still following that majority haven't even met is so sad. There is a book called "Not without my sister" Will have you in tears they tell there story simular to this. It was so sad.