Beyond Borders: Film Review

I really enjoyed this movie thus far. It is sad to know that events such as the ones shown in the movie still occur today in not only our own society but, in all, throughout various parts of the world. It is also sad that many people do nothing about it, especially those with the higher hierarchal positions. Overall, I liked how the film exposed the audience to everything. What I mean by this is that the film opened the eyes of its audience to the suffering that those people had to go through. For instance, the little baby boy and his mother and her wounds; sometimes it is those bloody scenes that really captures ones’ heart…those scenes that starts to make one think about reality and about doing something to stop and prevent it from ever occurring.

I strongly believe we, the Americans, still really do not know the true meaning of suffering nor how it truly feels. Again, it is after seeing such scenes where one is being operated on with-out any medications to numb you up is when you start to wonder wow how can someone stand that pain. I am glad this film was shown in class because it truly opened everyone’s eyes to reality. Americans, especially our generation, do not know how lucky they are and how good they have it until they are exposed to such an environment where people start eating and doing anything just to stay alive. Trust me when I say this because I was in such a situation in my life at one point. -END.

Kaitlyn Northrop, krn3@geneseo.edu, 12/13

Beyond Borders

I think that the one I found most interesting was Beyond Borders. I liked this one because not only did it show facts about what is happening to people around the world, but it also shows emotion. Some of the films we watched in the earlier part of the class were interesting as well, but they were more about just giving facts and showing the people. This one was more interesting because we could understand everything that was going on. It also showed how just one person rallying for a cause can actually make a difference in certain places of the world. This film made me have an emotional response, I felt like I could actually feel the pain that the civilians were facing and the internal battles that the rescue workers were going through. I could not imagine having to make the choice between helping someone and saying that they wouldn’t make it anyway, so giving up on them and moving on. This happened in the film after Sara (Angelina Jolie) first arrived at the camp with the mother and baby, and she forced them to actually help the boy and his mother, and the boy survived. This made me wonder if this actually happens in the real world, that the doctors are so overwhelmed with people that they look over those who are on the border of surviving.

END

Charlie Genao cg7@geneseo.edu

I like the movie thus far but what I would like to point out is the devestation of the enivironment that these people are facing. Not a single drop of rain has fell since god knows when. The poverty is unbearable you have people who are being operated on with no pain killers to numb the pain. You have dead corps everywhere and people fighting for food. You have politics in the way and the rich people just laugh at the poor boy who later died as a result of the cold. The most emotional part so far was when Angelina Jolie as the doctor why does he not call her by her name and the response was moving. Overall I think that people in this country dont realize how bad things can get. By seeing this film and others that were presented in the class I feel very lucky to live in this country.

[Jennifer Ritzenthaler, jkr5@geneseo.edu, 12/13/07]

Crossing Borders

Politics: This movie shows the hurt that becoming emotionally involved can bring. Sarah Jordan goes to Africa and in a truck on the way to the relief shelters she finds a very little, extremely malnourished boy and his dying mother on the side of the road. She demands to be allowed to take them with her to a doctor and the African woman with her calls her stupid, since she understands that not everyone can be saved and that treatment should probably be given to those who will benefit most and not to those who are likely past saving. Sarah refuses and is able to help save the boy, though the mother dies. The hurt of emotional attachment can also be seen in how Nick Callahan took his first save and friend to Britain to help get funding, and the little boy died there. This was very hard on him. This can help to portray why many people do not become involved in helping the poor because that requires that they care, which can have an affect on the rest of their lifestyle, which many people are unwilling to become involved.

END.

[Dan McConvey, dpm5@geneseo.edu, 12/14/07]

Beyond Borders

While I have a lot of wikis to catch up on, I really wanted to write this one before I lost steam so I could do it justice.

I think this is the most compelling film I’ve ever seen. (I know we’re not even done yet)

The opening scene in this film was really, the first time I’ve seen a film truly crash two worlds together and force reality on Westerners. Was it right for him to bring the boy? I don’t know. But the message was still so compelling. As the boy’s jacket was taken off and the room was shown emaciation, I felt for the first time that I was watching people ripped out of their comfortable numbness with no preparation at all. It was such a real moment. The legalities of storming into a private party, knocking someone over, the breaking of social norms to just “disrupt the fun”, was completely inconsequential in this moment. People were forced to look at what they were ignoring, forced to see, if just for a minute, what the other side was like.

They had been forced to look that boy in the eyes, and in that moment, make a choice. A choice they never thought they would have to make, a choice they didn’t want to make, but in that moment if they never did anything about it for the rest of their lives; they had made a choice not to. They could no longer feign innocence, they could rationalize afterwards, justify, sensationalize, or just pretend to forget, but at the end of the day, it had happened.

The banana being thrown into the middle of the floor, just gave me this feeling of people not knowing what to do about the intensity of this situation. They wanted it to be over, they wanted something to break this powerful, seemingly unending moment. As some laughed, I felt them trying to decrease the intensity of it, but then as he peeled the banana and handed it to the boy, the chance for humor was gone.

The look on his face, as Clive Owen told him to make the monkey noise for the people, just filled me with this pain. Was that what it would take? Entertainment? “Do you want me to sing and dance for you?” Because the boy would be saying “I’ll do it, I’m starving to death and you’re going to ask me if I’ll do anything for the piece of food you just threw at me?”

“More calories than he’ll get in a day” and it was all a joke to them.

This scene, as well as the movie thus far, is amazing. It humanized both sides by forcing the Westerners to pull themselves out of their comfortable blissful shells and acknowledge the inhumanity in letting all of these people die. No one can deny the pregnant feeling that was in the room or in the room as we watched the movie.

-END-

[Steph Aquilina, sma8@geneseo.edu, 12/14}

Film Review: Beyond Borders

POVERTY: This is especially regarding Larkin’s comment above: Last time I watched this movie, Dr. Chierici brought up a very interesting fact about it, involving that scene in the desert where the emaciated boy is crawling toward the vulture and Sarah rescues him. Apparently, the image of this interaction between the boy and the vulture was taken from a real photograph, and the man who took that picture had to choose whether he would run over to help the boy or capture the image on film to reach and shock an audience. His decision to document that moment tortured him until he eventually committed suicide… I think it’s eerily appropriate that Sarah chooses to save him – kind of like giving the real boy a second chance at life.

END

[Anne Kim, ak13@geneseo.edu, 12/15]

Beyond Borders

POLITICS: This film shows the struggles for the Ethiopians and Cambodians in living their lives. However, this film also shows the struggle for the people that try to help them more so than the hardships the Ethiopians and Cambodians go through. Our government is put in a negative light in this film for they are so reluctant to help the others in need. This can be seen through the characters of the movie. In addition, not only is the government seen in a bad light but also the people that pretend to help the people in need by fundraising. In the first scene, Nick Callahan barges into a fundraising party and shows that they are in truth, doing nothing to help the situation in Ethiopia.

END

[Dan Lilly, djl5@geneseo.edu, 12/15]

Beyond Borders

I can't believe I'd never heard of this movie. Its probably my favorite of the ones we've seen this year, and I can't wait to see the rest of it on Tuesday. It was rather difficult last time just to get up and walk out after seeing it and like start in on school work and other mundane things. As I started typing this I read what Steph said, and I think that's fascinating in a pretty frightening way. Probably one of the most interesting things I've seen in it so far was Nick's explanation for why he didn't use names. It must be awful to be around so much death that you would actually think of something like that.

(Cameron Mack, cfm6@geneseo.edu, 12/16)

Beyond Borders

The character played by Clive Owen is very complex, yet someone who should definately be analyzed. He comes off in a brash and uncaring manner, however, we have to understand that he has seen the ultimate level of suffering. To him, the people he treats should not even tell him their names, for it would be another person that he will remember (personally) as losing their lives. I enjoyed finally watching a film that seems to be a study of Americans, and often times, their disregard for the suffering of others. We live in an incredibly selfish society that tells us to feel sorrow for the people suffering in other countries, but to, at the same time, not take any action. This passive way of aknowledging suffering without directly assisting is so disappointing, however, something that is quite prevalent in our culture.

[Jennifer Mahoney, jrm30@geneseo.edu, 12/16]

I really enjoyed this film and how it displayed what it might be like to do volunteer work in a country with exteme proverty. I couldn't imagine being around so much suffering and death but being able to help a situation like that, even in the smallest way must be amazing. After her time in Ethiopia, Angelina Jolie's character couldn't simply go back to her old life but instead found a job with the UN where she could try to help people in need. I would imagine anyone in who spent time in that type of situation would be unable to go back to a life of luxury and greed and would instead find a way to dedicate their life to the cause.

End

Alfred Dilluvio ajd12@geneseo.edu 12/16

This film was interesting and visually stimulating. I think that films like this show us how little our government and other governments really do to help. It shows how our foreign affairs are motivated by our own greed. We only want to intervene and do things in other areas of the world if it is our best interest. Other governments of the world do the same thing and we selectively choose to involve ourselves in other peoples business only if it has an effect on our government's situation. We need to stop this but we cannot as long as we are governed by the kind of goverments we have chosen for the last century. The only time another country is helped is when people decide they are going to do it on their own. We see this in Beyond Borders with Angelina Joilie's character who decides once and for all, to do some good in this terrible world we live in.

[Dilek Canakci, dc11@geneseo.edu, 12/16]

I thought this movie was one of the best movies we've seen in this class. I can't imagine going to help such a poor country and be around such poverty and try to live a normal life after that. It shows so much struggle and pain that people go through just to survive each day and it makes you think of the comfort that we are in every day and things we take for granted. It also makes me sad that people wish such little power devote their lives to help these people and no one from the higher power do anything to make a change in these people's lives.

[Lanh Nguyen, ltn2@geneseo.edu, 12/17]

CROSSING BORDERS

This film is extremely interesting and very powerful in its message. I couldn't help be be overly involved in every action and reaction pertaining to Sarah. Throughout the film we are bombarded with the issue of poverty and developing counties. It was very interesting and an eye opener to see how at the beginning when Sarah decided to donate all of her life savings to help out in Africa only lasted for around a week. It was evident that she did not just donate a few hundred dollars, it was THOUSANDS and THOUSANDS of dollars, yet it virtually disappeared as fast as it arrived. It's sad to see how poor, sick and hopeless people are outside of our perfect bubble. We often times forget how fortunate we are to be able to eat, bathe, and sleep in a warm place, and this film definitely slaps us on the face with a reality check. --Very moving--

END

[Rebecca Coons, rsc2@geneseo.edu, 12/17/07]

Beyond Borders – I saw this film in one of my geography classes and we talked about how the amputees shown in the scene at Khmer Rouge were actual land-mine victims. Also of note is the fact that Angelina Jolie adopted her son Maddox during filming of this movie while in Cambodia. Also, prior to making this film, Jolie did volunteer work for the same United Nations organization her character plays in the film. She was ultimately named a UN goodwill ambassador and in 2003 published some journals she wrote of her experiences, titled "Notes from My Travels", to raise funds for refugee relief. Some of the places she writes about are featured in this movie.

[Laurie Sadofsky, las22@geneseo.edu, 12/17]

Crossing Borders

Economics/Social Change: This was a very inspirational and powerful film. Like Dan said, the first scene was one of the most shocking since it showed the clash between rich British people and a poor, starving child from Sudan. The image of the camps and the scene where the rebels came and tried to steal the food was frightening. For a minute the picture becomes so overwhelming, you do not know how to take it all in. The extremely emaciated child may have been the most disturbing part in the film.

The boy was literally on the verge of death and his mother had just died. We go about our daily lives practically oblivious to the conditions faced by millions of people like this boy. This movie did not let us hide from those images. It is easy to think about war, pandemics, starvation in terms of numerical casualties. Once you exchange a number for a face, the situation becomes that much more real.

--END--

[Skye Naslund, sjn1@geneseo.edu, 12/17/07]

Crossing Borders

This film provides a unique perspective about the roll of aid to the developing world. Most often, Ethnographic Films show cultures unexposed to the western world or to the violence of modern political turmoil. Not only is the film view through the eyes of a westerner, someone with a similar perspective as ours, but also it is of a topic rarely discussed because of the grotesqueness of the harm done to those effected by war and conflict.

{Isobel Connors, icc2@geneseo.edu, 12/17}

Crossing Borders

I was startled by the jolting reality of death and suffering in Ethiopia.  I have always been interested in doing volunteer work in third-world countries; however, I think I've had a sort of romanticized view of what this would entail.  I've never considered the severe danger and the overwhelming tragedy that surrounds this work.  I now have a much greater respect for those individuals who overcome their fear to help those who desperately need their aid.

~END.