Easy Streets

In the mail today, we received, via Netflix, the documentary "Easy Streets." Since you can get pretty much anything you could imagine from Netflix, we tend to pick out documentaries more than anything else. This movie seemed interesting enough, as it followed three or four homeless folks around, explaining their situation and their life stories, so we put it in our list. The problem is that after watching it, I am confused about what the film was trying to accomplish. It seemed to be a contradiction from start to finish. The folks in the movie were real, with very real problems, but seemed to be stereotypically homeless: there were many drunken people, self-proclaimed alcoholics, people with mental disorders, veterans, and a few who really were down on their luck but trying to bounce back. But, the movie didn't really work to make you feel a certain way towards the plight of the homeless; instead it left you feeling both sad and sorry for some while angry and irritated by others. But that may have been the point; homelessness is that kind of problem -- many causes, no real solution, and many misunderstood feelings. But .... "Easy Streets" wasn't a really strong movie. Check out "Word Wars" or "Wordplay." These are both great documentaries.