Who's in It: Nicole Kidman (narrator), John Dau, Daniel Abul Pach, Panther Bior
The Basics: Picking up where the documentary The Lost Boys of Sudan left off, this one — four years in the making — follows four young Sudanese men, who spent their childhood in Kenyan refugee camps after civil war and genocide raged through their country, as they're relocated to the United States. They try to make new lives while dealing with culture shock and the desire to find their families in Africa. And you'd think it would be a bummer to watch, but it's actually fascinating to see these guys deal with being aliens on a new American planet.
What's the Deal? This movie gets the Oprah aesthetic down just right. It doesn't dwell on the history or the horror of the Sudan crisis — just that it happened. Because really, how many emaciated child bodies do you need to see to understand it? What you get, instead, is the chance to see how difficult it really is for refugees to resettle here and then the inspirational stuff that moves you and maybe even inspires you to go learn more or find out what you can do to help out with all the suffering. So it might not pass the test with grumpy sociological-doc lovers, but it'll open your eyes if you've never heard about this kind of thing before.
Besides Kidman, Here Are the Other Celebrities Who Made This Happen: Brad Pitt (who doesn't just co-adopt African babies; he puts up his money to help get himself a Best Documentary Oscar), Catherine Keener and Dermot Mulroney. They're all producers.
How It's Like Borat: The four men it focuses on, having lived their lives in a refugee camp, are new to things like electricity ("I think it will be hard for me to learn to use it," says one), the one-spouse-only-rule, Pepsi and potato chips. After putting an entire pat of butter into his mouth on the trans-Atlantic flight, one says, "It tastes like soap!" and then talks about how the food in the refugee camp was better. There is, however, no attempt to kidnap Pam Anderson.
After You Buy a Ticket, You Can Spend Some More Money, and Pitt Will Match You Dollar for Dollar! Go to godgrewtiredofus.com to help. And I just made up that part about Pitt. He's not dollar-matching anyone. But he could, I bet.
My Friend Curt, Who's Also a Critic, Keeps Forgetting the Precise Name of This Movie, So He Calls It: The Last Time We Saw God, He Said, "Hey, There … You," So We Don't Think He Remembers Our Names. So remember, if you don't think that's funny at all, then it wasn't me who said it.