documentary filmmaking at its best

I first heard of this film on NPR, and I was intrigued based on the sole the fact that it's a documentary. (I’m a huge fan of documentaries.) Then I find out that it's playing on PBS and I got to watch it.

This film is by far the most captivating film I have ever seen. The director(s) did a wonderful job of letting the story tell itself, and I appreciated the fact that they gave minimal commentary and just let the camera role. By the end of the film I felt I had a direct connection with every character in the film. I felt I was there with all of the children as they battled with cancer. I felt for the families having to go through the battle that cancer is. It helped me deal with a lot of the pain I locked up inside when my family went through the same ordeal over ten years ago with my young cousin and later with my uncle. It was by far the most difficult film I have ever watched.

Prior to watching the film I would often get into these meaningless debates about whatever on the IMDB message board as well as other “blog” sites, but after watching this film it made all of that seem trivial and thus a waste of time.

I believe everyone should watch this film because it brings a sense of reality. Sometimes we become too comfortable with our lives and forget about everyone else. It’s a true reality check, and that's exactly what a documentary should always be.