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List Price: $4.99 | | Label: Warner Home Video
Salesrank: 33752
Released: May 27, 2008 |
| Our Price: $3.68 |
| Used Price: $1.73 |
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MPAA Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Making a difference. Now. This acclaimed, inspiring documentary follows six people who are striving to end the suffering in Sudan’s war-ravaged Darfur. The six – an American activist, an international prosecutor, a Sudanese rebel, a sheikh, a leader of the World Food Program, and Don Cheadle, who traverses the globe with fellow actor George Clooney to pressure world leaders – demonstrate the power of one individual to make extraordinary changes. Be an eyewitness to the tragedy and the triumphs, the fear and the pride. Meet the refugees, determined to return to their beloved homeland. And discover how you too can make a difference.
Description of Darfur Now:
Hard to watch but impossible to turn away from, Darfur Now aims to educate, illuminate, and, most of all, motivate viewers to somehow get involved in bringing the calamitous situation in that African land to an end. Some basic facts are provided at the beginning of writer-director Theodore Braun’s 98-minute documentary: Located in western Sudan, Darfur, a region about the size of France with a population of six million, has been in a state of severe crisis since 2003, when non-Arabs rebelled against the Muslim government. Working in tandem with the dread Janjaweed (literally "devils on horseback") to wipe out the rebels, military forces have enacted a relentless and systematic genocide that has resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths, with millions more displaced. The film then focuses on six individuals and their roles in the conflict. Luis Moreno-Ocampo, prosecutor for the International Criminal Court, works to collect evidence to use against the Sudanese authorities; Adam Sterling, a young American enraged by the lack of world response to the crisis, campaigns in California to pass legislation to force companies with interests in Sudan to divest; Pablo Recalde of the West Darfur World Food Program strives to provide food and save lives; Ahmed Mohammad Abakar, chief sheikh at a camp for displaced persons in Darfur, tries to rally his people; Hejewa Adam, a female rebel, trains to fight the Janjaweed; and actor-author Don Cheadle uses his celebrity (as well as George Clooney's) to raise public and official awareness of the situation. (The Sudanese government is represented by its U.N. ambassador, an unctuous individual who complains that the West has "over-dramatized" the situation.) These efforts are not without their successes: Sterling gets his bill passed, Recalde's food gets distributed, and Ocampo brings charges against two Sudanese officials (a largely hollow gesture, as the government refuses to surrender them). Beautifully filmed and edited, with multiple stories taking place on several fronts, Darfur Now plays more like a fictional drama than a documentary. But it's all too real, of course. "We must be patient until the white people come," says one of the rebels. It’s a poignant, slightly pathetic statement, but unless that happens, this story will have no happy ending. --Sam Graham
Darfur Now Reviews:
Now what? 
2009-05-05 - Effectively educational without being sentimental or sensational, this film tells the story of modern genocide and the western cultural denial of it. Kudos to Cheadle for being a voice for those whose story would otherwise still not have been told.
A thorough effort to cover the issue
2009-04-11 - If you are interested in international humanitarian efforts, particularly the Darfur crisis - I would say that this is a necessary addition to your research materials - more now than ever as Darfur is in greater crisis since this film was made.
Since early March 2009, a warrant was recently issued by the ICC for the arrest of Omar Al-Bashir - President of Sudan, and many humanitarian aid organizations have since been booted out of the country leaving millions on the edge of imminent danger. (see more: http://sebiart.blogspot.com/2009/03/urgent-report-on-darfur-you-too-from.html)
This dvd thoroughly covers the history of the problem in Darfur, following six different individuals around the world, and their involvement in the liberation of the civilian population. There is ample information here about the ICC (international criminal court) and their investigations into crimes against humanity. It also shows Don Cheadle and George Clooney's very earnest and active roles in attempting to bring worldwide awareness to this VERY pressing issue.
I originally rented this video and then bought it as I felt it was timeless and invaluable reference material for my library; and as documentary DVDs go - this is incredibly affordable.
Great Documentary!
2009-03-01 - This is a totally different documentary about Darfur! Most are told from an interview perspective, but this documentary, from the perspectives of six different individuals from different countries and walks of life, is a great resource for anyone wanting to know more about Darfur.
great cause, more of this
2008-09-05 - This highlights the cause and the people who are helping that cause of Darfur. I hope this opens people's eyes to the real problems in Sudan. Cheers for those who are out to publish truth.
See people at social action work 
2008-08-30 - Darfur is one of todays often overlooked nightmares. See six people trying to do something about the problem.
