Sensitive, intelligent, enlightening, and sometimes surprising.
80
Film ThreatEric Campos
Film ThreatEric Campos
An entertaining experience as the filmmakers focus on a few select boys who provide a wealth of charm as they struggle with their new surroundings.
75
New York PostV.A. Musetto
New York PostV.A. Musetto
Seventy percent of black boys in Baltimore do not graduate from high school. They're more likely to land in jail -- or a cemetery. But there is hope, according to The Boys of Baraka, an uplifting documentary.
75
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
The results are amazing, though bittersweet, and demonstrate how complicated and expensive it is (though not impossible) to break the cycle of poverty, crime and lack of education.
70
The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
The docu is not visually innovative, but the content more than makes up for what it lacks in style.
Ewing and Grady practically squander the African material, and The Boys Of Baraka doesn't really come to life until the boys return to Baltimore for what turns out to be a permanent summer vacation, due to political unrest overseas.
40
Village VoiceLaura Sinagra
Village VoiceLaura Sinagra
The Boys of Baraka's heart may be in the right place, but its portrait of poor Baltimore kids selected to attend boarding school in Kenya is rife with suspect perspectives.