Customer Reviews

National Geographic - World's Most Dangerous Gang

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

You've probably heard about high profile gangs that make up some of the American landscape and those would include some like the Crips, Bloods, Hell's Angels, Mexican Mafia, The Latin Kings, Chinese Triads, Japanese Yakuza, and Skinheads. These are just a few and they are all notorious in their own right but there is an even more insidious gang that is growing at a frightful rate on a global scale.

In the 1980's in Los Angeles, the gang MS -13 came from humble beginnings but now spreads across 33 different states in America and 6 different countries around the world. The estimated numbers are ten thousand members in the United States and up to one hundred thousand worldwide. It seems like virtually no communities are left untouched by their presence as they expand like a plague through urban and rural settings.

MS -13 is touted as the fastest growing and most violent gang in America at the present time. They have their own culture and abide by a set of rules and rituals that they follow to the letter. Enforcing these measures, protecting their turf, and conducting day to day business oftentimes means using murder, maiming, and other brutalities to accomplish whatever they need to. They are made up of individual cliques inside distinct territories that govern themselves but there is evidence of a top hierarchy that has influences down through the ranks. Organization in criminal activities appears to be well structured also and money is made from drug smuggling and dealing, extorting protection money, gun running, and other illicit affairs.

National Geographic has put together a detailed, informative, and scary documentary that is well supported with interviews from law enforcement officials and past and present members of the MS -13 gang. This program does contain graphic video footage and some disturbing images but it is not excessive in my opinion and I see it as a necessary element in supporting the overall messages here.

WORLD'S MOST IMPORTANT GANG (2006), referring to MS13 or Mara
Salvatrucha, is a valid documentary, that seems to have been a
maverick project, on a shoe string budget for National Geographic.

It's pleasant to watch, from a wide-screen, sharp filming quality
throughout, and also with the surreal footage of actual
neighborhood gangster driving around their block and giving a tour
to the reporter, and commenting on their protection racket, how
hotdog and fries, Mom and Pop stores have to cough up half of their
profits to them, or how amphetamines are big business and
contribute to a lot of profits.

A fair bit of time is spent dispelling the notion that it is safe
to be a stool pigeon for the FBI, and so on, as it tells the
biography of a former member who tried to leave the movement, but
naively, wrecklessly and clumsily got caught by other gangsters as
being a confidential informant.

It's very comprehensive, and the MS13 aspect to it, doesn't
necessarily dominate, as the extras section discusses the history
behind gangs and goes over a litany of them, such as Al Capone,
Lucy Lucciano, Jesse James, 40 Thieves, 5 Points Gang of NYC,
Bloods, Crips, Latin Kings, Vice Lords, Outlaws (Biker gang in the
Great Lakes area), Hells Angles, Los Reinos, 18 Street, Mexican M,
Skinheads, Asian Triads, Camorra, La Cosa Nostra, Genovese, Black
Hand, Yakuza, Gangster Disciples, People's Nation, Folk Nation,
Bugsy Siegel, Oriental Lazy Boys, and more. It refers to the
National Gang Intelligence Center, and various measures in dealing
with gangs.

It also is admittedly apologetic, about gangs, in terms of their
value in assisting migrants, illegal and legal, in adapting to the
new homeland, for protection against discrimination, identity and
power and social networking. Various examples are given, such as
the Irish, Mexican, Sicilian or Italian, Asian, Blacks, Porto
Rican, and others, for example.

Overall, it's valuable as a school-grade presentation, mostly.

I have to agree with some of the comments made by other reviewers that posted negative feedback. I found this film to be an embarrassment to Nat'l Geographic's prestigious reputation. Several claims and ascertains are posed but are supported with absolutely no evidence. I'd describe this film as sensationalized, not a serious piece of journalism. The tone of the film is bogged down by persistent and repetitive fear mongering, which detracts significantly from the potential of the film. A great portion of the filming time was used to repeatedly describe MS 13 as something to fear, a menace, a quickly spreading "virus" that's quickly spreading across the country to your city and your neighborhood. It seems as though the filmmaker's target audience is middle-aged suburban Americans. I feel as though NG could have produced an equally informative film in half the time if they omitted all the noise about being very, very afraid.

As usual, these folks do a terrific documentary. The information is detailed and photographed in a compelling, interesting way. If you want to learn about gangs in america, this is a great video to get you started.

Why would NG do a Documentary on A Street Gang/Organization such as this? It repeats itself unless you are completely clueless there is no value in making this, Everybody knows who MS13 the more we glamorize the problem the worst it gets, and yes we should deport them all back to their country, And if El Salvador has Heavy Handed Methods to deal with them so be it. You Fight fire with fire. Lisa Ling is annoying, Am I saying we should ignore the Gang Problem? NO, Intervention and when that fails MINIMUM Long Sentences even for first time offenses,invoke RICO,I know these solutions will not eliminate the problem as you can't get rid of evil but we certainly don't need sympathetic lawyers and judges. If I wanted to see Indians running wild I'd watch a western.

I enjoyed the video and, because National Geographic filmed it in good taste without compromise to the subject matter, would recommend it to anyone at any age.

This was recommended by a College of Justice and Safety professor to use as a source for a High School senior project and was well worth it.

This Documentary is probably the worst-edited one I can remember seeing, of many. It repeats some things many times, and says them later as if it's the first mention.

For example, after introducing the name of the gang, MS, and giving the Spanish translation, leaving the viewer wondering what that means, minutes later it refers to 'a violent gang, called MS', as if it's the first mention, and only then gives the meaning of the name.

You lose count of how many times it says some things. Some of the content is presented in a less than useful sequence, etc.

It also spends too much time on some small, specific bits, while not doing enough to really lay out the operations.

It does have some good bits - they go to El Salvador and get some footage what things are like there.

It's dramatic that a member tours the streets of LA with them - and spots an enemy gang member he says he'll kill, and days later apparently does so and is arrested for murder.

Some of the 'scoops' of people don't seem to have a lot - you will be shocked to learn from one member who talks that the gang can get you any drugs - and he then lists several. Not a big revelation.

It really does seem to fall well below National Geographic standards in a way - but it tells an important story, and I'd like to encourage them for doing that.

An interesting, comprehensive, rationally structured and presented documentary of good visual/audio quality and extras educative is about the US organised crime substantiated with "illegal allies" influx instant.

World's Most Dangerous Gang
~ From National Geographic"
Good to know about this gang stories, to be aware what can happened in a gang.