La Sierra

During the day, La Sierra—a drug-infested barrio near Medellin, Colombia—seems like an average place, where the young men listen to pop music, dance with lots of willing girls, joke around, and play with their children. But appearances are deceiving: at night, some of these same men conceal their faces, strap on their guns, and join the longstanding war between left-wing guerillas, right-wing paramilitaries, and Colombian government troops. Scott Dalton and Margarita Martinez's documentary La Sierra focuses on several young men, warriors in a now-40-year conflict, as they live their everyday lives, and talk about their hopes and fears for the future (some men say they'd like to get out of the fight but don't know how). Unfortunately, the film runs too long, repeats points already made, lacks historical context, and never really clarifies what these men aim to accomplish. At times the conflict seems like an elaborate urban macho ritual related to status and turf (the filmmakers seem to have complete access, putting the viewer uncomfortably close to the nightly firefights that result in random, grisly deaths). Ultimately, viewers are likely to be alternately fascinated and repelled by this unvarnished view of thug life, but the directors deserve credit for exposing a situation generally overlooked by the mainstream media's obsession with larger global concerns. A strong optional purchase. Aud: C, P. (S. Rees)[DVD Review—Feb. 20, 2007—First Run Features, 84 min., in Spanish w/English subtitles, not rated, $29.95—Making its first appearance on DVD, 2004's La Sierra sports a solid transfer, with DVD extras including text film notes and filmmaker bios, and trailers. Bottom line: a small extras package for an uneven documentary.]