Two new films about children in Central America visit pre-teens and teens in Guatemala, Nicaragua, and El Salvador. Meredith Sommers' Central American Children Speak: Our Lives and Our Dreams opens in a 4th-grade Minnesota classroom where students offer a number of questions that they would ask children in Central America about their lives. Traveling to Guatemala, the camera first visits Maria and Karin, friends who live in La Isal, a barrio in Guatemala City. Sounding a theme that runs throughout the stories of the children here (and those on If the Mango Tree Could Speak), the girls talk about their fear of government soldiers and their hope for peace. Life is hard; Maria is generally up between 4 and 5 a.m. each morning to begin making tortillas. So is Evelin, who lives in a rural community, and makes incredibly beautiful tapestries (what's really amazing is that Evelin is only 11). In Nicaragua, we meet Jonni, also 11, who pays 10 pesos a month for school and hopes to become a good farmer like his father some day. And, we meet Lisbet (10) and Rafael (11), who produce a radio program for kids. Rafael plays a lovely song for his girlfriend Diana (who, I'm sorry to report, is no longer Rafael's girlfriend, though the song is still his favorite). While the living conditions and most definitely the political conditions are a far cry from those enjoyed by U.S. children, these kids--who play baseball, sport Anthrax caps, and are familiar with Nintendo--share much in common with their northern peers. Like kids everywhere these kids want and need love, friendship, and security. a good overview.If the Mango Tree Could Speak, by filmmaker Patricia Goudvis, is also comprised of a series of vignettes featuring children from Guatemala and El Salvador. It's a darker portrait, and although it sets out to try to understand something universal about children in war-torn Central America, it doesn't really get there--or at least the filmmaker has little to say editorial-wise (beyond the obligatory whacks at U.S. funding), leaving us to draw our own conclusions. In Guatemala, we meet 14-year-old Diego, and watch as his assassinated father's body is exhumed from a mass grave. Diego knows who killed his father--his neighbors--who he speaks with all the time, but not about his father's death. We also meet Rosario, whose brother was killed by soldiers during a protest march, and Sebastian, who along with those left in his family, is in hiding. Moving over to El Salvador, the program introduces Chico, who at 12, is tragically serious for his years; the result, no doubt, of watching from a tree as relatives were mown down by gunfire. And Giovanni, 14, talks about his life among the guerrillas: what it feels like to use a gun, and how he felt about killing soldiers. When violence is endemic, as it is for the kids profiled in these programs, one's priorities are different (although even in If the Mango Tree Could Speak many of the children gather for a rollicking game of soccer). While we may not come much closer to understanding life in Central America, we are afforded a glimpse of what it's like there. Winner of an Education Jury Award for Enhancing Global Awareness at the 1993 Chicago International Children's Film Festival.Both titles are recommended for larger collections. (R. Pitman)
Central American Children Speak: Our Lives And Our Dreams; If the Mango Tree Could Speak
(1993) 40 min. $75 (study guide included). Resource Center of the Americas. PPR. Color cover. Vol. 9, Issue 3
Central American Children Speak: Our Lives And Our Dreams; If the Mango Tree Could Speak
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