Megacities (1998)

To me, this movie is perfection.

It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

Don't listen to the negative reviews

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

I cannot agree with the gentleman from Mannheim finding this movie exploitive and staged. Sure there were many scenes "staged" but certainly the "Truth" of it all spoke for itself. A better title perhaps would have been "Hell on Earth and the human condition", but that's OK. Mumbai, Moscow, Mexcico City and New York City, they all lend themselves for the study of the every day, for the every day poor and wretched. I have lived in Delhi for almost 3 years, but seeing Mumbai in this movie, in this way, was almost worse than being there myself. But in the end, after having seen the madness of the three other places, India seemed almost harmless again. Every viewer brings his own history, prejudices, expectations and stories to a new movie, but I am sure this one will really make a lasting impression.

well, i hear the criticism about paying the subjects, exploitation, political agenda, etc. is not everything an illusion to one degree or another? however, billions of humans in economic poverty is not an illusion. the film presents persons usually never seen by the privileged minority (not just untouchables; "unseeables") that constitute perhaps the majority of the residents of planet earth. all filmed subjects (when the subjects are aware of being filmed, that is) are altered by the presence of the camera, and microphones. there is no way to transmit the smells, the extremes of temperature/humidity, but all these things are there, 24/7/365 for many people. i think it is a valid testimony to reality, and well worth seeing. i spent months in two of the cities, new york and Mexico city, and have lived for two years in another megacity, sao paulo, brasil. seeing is believing, and these places have a surreal aspect to them, especially the slums, favelas, etc. such humanity pressed together, many struggling to survive in massive cities where indeed there is ample money flowing, but the concentration of this wealth is amongst the few. one would be foolish to ignore the urban phenomenon and the effects on terrestrial sensibilities and life itself. there is a karmic aspect at work as well, which for me is the parallel with "koyaanisquatsi", "baraka", etc. so the director paid them! should he have filmed them for free?

I haven't seen lots of documentaries, but this was one of the best ones I've seen in years. The film portrays the poor, homeless, and drug addicted citizens of Bombay, Mexico City, Moscow and New York City. Some scenes are so realistic that I wondered how they were shot - e.g. some of the scenes with the heroin addict in New York City.Seeing a film like this also makes you realize how many people's stories do not get told by Hollywood films. When is the last time you saw some mass marketed film about a mother who strip dances to feed her children? Or a man who shakes different colored paint through a sieve for a living? The only other film I can think of like this was Hoop Dreams, but that at least dealt with young people with a chance to make something of their lives. Megacities deals with those who didn't make it and never will.Yet some scenes aren't completely depressing. There's a DJ in New York City, asking his listeners to describe how they survive in the city. There are children in India who take turns watching an Indian soap opera. Finally and most disgusting, there's a scene with a whole barrel full of chickens whose necks have been broken and throats slashed but yet still move around and splatter their blood against the wall.I'm surprised that so few people have seen (and thus voted) this film, especially considering it won awards in three continents. If you get a chance to see it, do, but be forewarned of its vividness.10/10

Nice one, though at the beginning of the film it's hard to keep up with the subtitles and the images at the same times.The scene of the chickens being left to die brought shivers down my spine. It makes me think twice about eating chickens.