A documentary film that deals with the struggle of young black boys to find a meaningful life, in the inner city of Baltimore. 

The film follows four 12 year old black boys growing up in the rough inner city of Baltimore, Maryland. Devon, Montrey, Richard and his brother Romesh are among the twenty boys "at risk", selected to attend an experimental boarding school located in Kenya, East Africa. Baraka School is known for strict academic and disciplinary programs.

At home, these four kids had been causing too many problems in their schools. Richard and his brother Romesh's father is in jail and they had been living with their mother. Devon's mother is a drug user who had been in and out of jail. Montrey has a bad temper which caused him lot of trouble.

When they arrive in Africa, some of them were homesick, but they decided to stick it out and survive. Academically, they started to do well under the supervision of strict teachers. But when they returned home for the summer vacation, they had to overcome old temptations to get into their old ways of life. Then came the bad news. Due to political situations in Kenya, Baraka School has to suspend the operation. Now the students as well as their families are in chaos. Find out what is going to happen to these young men.

Directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady present a month by month chronology of four under privileged boys, in Africa as well as in Baltimore after their return. The film is shot over a period of three years and narrated mainly through the boys themselves. They touch poverty, crime, lack of discipline in public schools as well as the damaging influence of bad kids over the good ones. They are trying to deliver a message to the world that the cycle of crime, poverty and lack of education can be broken by pulling out these boys and girls from the poor neighborhood.

Visually, the film is not that great but content wise it has substance. At times it is funny but overall it is a sad tale of under privileged kids.

We rate this movie GOOD.