User reviews

When I saw that Stacy Peralta had another documentary at this year's Sundance, I put it at the top of my list. Both Riding Giants (surfing) and Dogtown and Z-Boys (skateboarding) were extraordinary peeks into unique and fascinating American cultures. Made in America shifts it's focus to another less romantic section of Southern California, and promised a more somber experience, taking a penetrating look at the gangs of South Central Los Angeles, one of the most deadly areas in the United States.

Like his other docs, this one takes a historical perspective. How did these gangs start? What cultural forces propagated their beginnings and fueled their growth? Who are these people? What are they really like, and why do they do what they do? I think Peralta's gift is that he manages to really connect with his subjects and gain their trust, which turns out to be absolutely critical in the South Central neighborhoods. He also manages to tell a story with interest and compassion, but primarily through the perspective of those that have lived and shaped the experience.

Financed by South Central native and Golden State Warriors star Baron Davis, as well as an anonymous interested party in Hollywood, Made in America tells a story about a part of America we have chosen to ignore, despite the small-scale war that rages there every day. Seeing this movie will make you think a little differently about gang warfare, change your perspective, maybe add a little empathy to your world view. And for a filmmaker, that's perhaps the highest form of the art.

Sundance Moment: I saw this movie at the last day of Sundance down in Salt Lake City, far away from the glitz and glamor and stars in Park City. I heard Stacy Peralta was sick and probably wouldn't make it. But he did come, and not just for the introduction, but stayed for the Q&A as well, and talked with passion about how make this movie had changed him, and how important it is that we realize that teenagers are killing each other, something that would absolutely not be tolerated by society in any suburban area of our country, but goes virtually unnoticed in South Central.

Saw the film tonight at the LA Film Festival and really enjoyed it. It provides a history of LA gang culture from a social perspective, then jumps all the way back to slavery. It's not New Jack City or a history of crack. It's the story of a marginalized community right smack in the middle of the American dream machine. Although the stories are bleak and depressing, the film is one of the most positive efforts I've seen in years. Very different from Peralta's previous docs. He even refused to answer skateboarding questions from audience members and brought a lot of the main characters up on stage to take questions from the audience. I hope this doc gets the attention it deserves.

I watched this documentary as part of the Independent Lens series on PBS, and thought it was great. The film covers a lot of topics related to the gang of South Central Los Angeles, from their earliest history to the socio-economic causes to the effect it has on real families. And it ends with a sense of hope that the people of that community can in fact put an end to the cycle.

It would be easy to do a documentary on this topic that reeks of white guilt or points fingers or cozies up to the gang members. But instead, this film takes a very neutral viewpoint. That's part of what makes it great. Plus, it's very well done technically. The soundtrack is outstanding, the narration is good, and the audio is unusually good for a documentary.

I give it an 8/10.

This documentary essentially begins by describing how one certain part of Los Angeles was isolated from all of the other neighborhoods due to racial overtones. Of special significance was the policy of Mayor Sam Yorty who completely neglected the problems of racism and unemployment within that specific community which eventually resulted in the Watts riot of 1965. To that effect, the documentary then goes on to explain how certain street gangs within, most notably Watts and Compton, began to merge into the rival organizations known as the Crips and Bloods. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this turned out to be an interesting documentary due in large part to the first-hand accounts of people who lived within the communities most impacted by these two gangs. Unfortunately, although it provides a general history of these two gangs and exposes the problems associated with them, I found it difficult to accept the remedies proposed at the end of the documentary as a lasting solution. At least, not as long as drugs remain so profitable, families lack a father figure and guns are so readily available. Despite this one particular criticism, I still found this to be an informative documentary and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

I would like to start right off by saying that those of you who have criticized this film for being one sided propaganda, flashy, too much like a music video, exaggerated, etc. etc. have no idea what you are talking about

For the past 10 years I have worked as a bartender in nightclubs in the LA area. I got to know a lot of people from South Central LA, including a lot of gangsters and gang bangers, both black and Hispanic, and I have a few friends that live in that area. Unless you have been there yourself, you do not know anything about South Central. It is a no man's land, miles of run down houses and buildings, blocks of empty lots, liquor stores and pawn shops, as the film indicates. The schools are in shambles, with over crowding, no music, no art. There are no parks, no museums, no nothing. You try living like that.

A few weeks ago, I found a stray dog there on the corner and I took it home, a week later there was a gang shooting on the same corner, A 19 year old had been shot and killed with an AK47.

I used to think people were exaggerating, but clearly I was wrong. We're all a product of our surroundings, and this truly is a kill or be killed environment, and it's not just the gang bangers that own guns.

I do not condone their behavior, but I have to say that most of the guys I have met, were good guys that ended up in a terrible way of life. And don't forget most of them got involved in gangs when they just kids, usually about 10 years old. So it's easy to see how they can get caught up in this violent, oppressive, hopeless, maze, that our society doesn't care about. Add to that any personal challenges such as a dysfunctional home, low self esteem, addiction, etc. etc and you have a recipe for disaster. Oh, and let's not forget about how many guns and assault rifles are on the street, thanks to the NRA.

Also, I saw this film on PBS which is a network known for quality programming, so I highly doubt they would have aired it if it were not an authentic documentary. I also doubt Forrest Whitaker would have narrated it, and he is from there, he would know.

Again I don't think the gang thing is OK, but this problem did not come out of a vacuum, and that's the point of the film, that there are events and circumstances that have created this problem.

Growing up I faced a lot of challenges, a crazy family, problems with drugs and alcohol, depression, low self esteem, and I am a white female who lived in a nice neighborhood. I cannot imagine adding to it all of the above, I think it would have pushed me over the edge.

This film is the real deal no matter what the critics say.

I was lucky enough to be part of a select crowd last week to see the Los Angeles premier of "Made In America" in the center of downtown LA. The atmosphere was charged with excitement as many of the characters who appeared in the film were there to see it, many for the first time. Though there were were sound issues early, the power and integrity of the film could not be masked.

This is such an important film. It is so easy to live in this city, sitting back in condos in Sherman Oaks or fancy houses in Brentwood, and have no idea that a whole other city exists just south of the 10 freeway. Early on in the movie a number is thrown out; fifteen thousand gang related homicides in the past twenty years. Think about that for a moment. If that was happening in any other country, to any other race of people, there would be an out cry to the UN. In Los Angeles, it's just another day. Turn the page and see what Britney did this time. This is a story that needs to be told. The people of Los Angeles need to hear this. I heard some talk at the end of the film that they may try to show this in the LA school system. I hope that this happens. Knowledge is power. And, there is a message in here that needs to be shouted from the roof tops.

I have seen some critics try to attack Stacy Peralta, suggesting that a white, former surfer/skate boarder does not have the right to tell this tale. I would ask, if not him, then whom? Who else has stepped up to put their reputation on the line, to go into these neighborhoods with an open mind and open heart, and sacrificed years of their life to give a voice to this condemned segment of society? This has been Stacy's most ambitious project to date. I applaud his efforts and congratulate him on shedding light on a subject that most of America would rather ignore.

Please go see this film. Please tell your friends. It's not a romantic comedy. You will feel it in your guts for the next week or so. But, it's worth it, I promise.

The documentary is pretty one-sided in terms of what it covers. But I don't begrudge that what it does address did lead to gangs (segregation, racism, etc.). The film tells this side well with good background and history. I learned a lot about LA racial history. However, the "criminal enterprise" aspect of gangs isn't really addressed at all. Gangs have structures, turf, and commerce. While they may have sprung from hopelessness and segregation, they evolved into criminal enterprises that are quick to use deadly violence.

I give this film 5 stars because it really addresses half the story. It is a good history lesson on why gangs came to be, but I would have liked to understand their structure and commerce more (the day-to-day reasons for their existence and brutality). The film kind of shrugs off the violence as gang members list many reasons why their lives suck. That's fine, but it really needed to be balanced more with what they gain from gangs through drugs, robbery and violence. The gang members are not powerless victims - they profit from and gain status from the violence.

I recently saw this at Birmingham, Alabama's Sidewalk Film Festival. Stacey spoke afterward the screening about how the movie was shown many times to people in LA to make sure that he was getting the right angle. Also, that he spent months WITHOUT a camera getting to know the people that were featured in the film.

Living in Birmingham, being one the nation's most dangerous and racially-divided cities, I can see how this film is relatable to all oppression-linked crime.

I think that this issue is extremely too large for Stacey to have adjusted his focus any wider. To ask the director to squeeze more information into this documentary would be asking too much of him. I thought that it was, over-all, very interesting visually and in meaning which can be hard to come by in today's documentaries. I really hope HBO or some other distributer picks this doc up. It needs to be seen, not only by LA natives, but all of America.

This was a superior movie. All gang members should watch it and see that what they're fighting for is nothing. This movie was an eyeopener and was very educational. It is sad that people are killing in and destroying their own neighborhoods. All of the years of fighting should have proved by now that nothing is gained with these deaths. The only hope is that the mothers only give birth to girls from here on and the females in these environments wise up and straighten things up. This fighting is not for honor or family. It is a testosterone battle that on one is winning. It is so sad that it takes the accidental murder of innocent children to open the gangs eyes, if only for a while. The government needs to implement something that will give these young men some pride and something to work toward besides daily survival. I was very moved by this movie.

i just received this DVD as an ebay purchase a couple days ago, im a huge documentary fan and i have seen many other blood and crip documentaries but this one is unique.

bloods and crips made in America sets itself apart from other similar documentaries where their sole intention is mostly to entertain us and glorify gangs, but this documentary really gets deep within the world of LA gangs and reveals that their all humans and gives some explanation to their story to oppose the common belief of many people that LA gang members are all evil, many of them are truly just victims of their circumstances which to many people can make them seem evil, which many gang members are not (though i am sure some are just bad people).

hard to sum up the whole experience of this movie, but basically it shows the human side of things, there is a lot of reasonable arguments and perspectives definitely worth listening to and it definitely helped open my eyes to the dungeon many of those young people are born into, the seemingly endless cycle of poor circumstances in a deep ditch that is the los angeles ghettos.

I sat all primed to explore why this dangerous gang thing had erupted in the midst of some of the wealthiest areas in America but, damn, I soon got tired of it. The fact-finding may be good but the presentation is awful. What was the director thinking with all the epilepsy-style editing?? Truly naff decision trying to force drama into a story like this by jumping images all the over the place every nano-second. A sign of a weak story and amateur direction. Ruined it for me. All I got was a headache. Real shame as I looked forward to it but all I can do, whether learning about a blood or a crip, is give up the trip.

Hardly any of this documentary is about the Crips or Bloods, more just a documentary about black youth in the 70s / 80s. Really slow, really boring. I don't mind slow paced docs but there was just very little substance or direction. Really disappointed.

This movie was hands down, excellent. As a history buff, I thoroughly enjoyed learning the history of L.A. The first hand accounts along with the imagery was fantastic. I have read several reviews and noticed that people seem to think something was missing from the movie since it didn't go into as much depth in discussing the mechanics of the gang lifestyle. Well, I think they may have missed the point. As the title suggests, these gangs were MADE in America. And the movie goes to great lengths to illustrate this.

Others were not satisfied because they weren't spoon fed the who, what, when and where of the origins of the gangs. This was done on purpose. If you paid attention to Kumasi, he told you everything you needed to know. When he said : "Part of the mechanics of oppression is to pervert people into becoming instruments of their own oppression." – this was the beginning of the Crips and Bloods. If you don't know anything about Hoover of COINTELPRO, then maybe you won't get it. You have to read between the lines.

How do think they have such powerful guns, what about drugs? I'm no conspiracy theorist but the evidence is outstanding that the Crips and Bloods formed out of an attempt to eradicate a certain community.

This movie should be shown in all schools and parents should show it to their children. Thank you Mr. Peralta and everyone involved in the making of this film.

i read the last comment.. it was written by someone who didn't understand the meaning that this documentary wanted to represent... its about people not the materialism they created... its about feelings of being a human... what went wrong and what it really means.. its not about the shiny guns and wheels.. its a meaningful documentary everyone should watch it...

how men where misguided because of the environment they lived.... how violence grew in that place.. the soundtrack was best of it... watch this documentary and change your life and you will know that you are in better place than them...

A soulless and oddly voyeuristic white boy's visit to the South Side – seemingly for the first time – "Crips and Bloods: Made in America" offers few insights and much editorial gimmickry in an extended, ninety-three minute rock video which ultimately concludes that yes, THEY are human. Oh my goodness! Who knew?

About fifteen years ago filmmaker Randy Holland made a documentary about the 1992 Los Angeles riots, "The Fire This Time," which covers the same material, with the same structure. Using interviews with scholars, statesmen and the mothers of murdered Black Panthers along with members of the community, this earlier film provides an intellectual context that explains the emergence of gangs from the ashes of militancy, whereas the Pearlta doc shows little more than a litany of anger and self-pity.

"Crips and Bloods: Made in America" was made in America on a nifty computer, by a filmmaker who thinks good editing entails hammering on the keyboard as though it were a drum kit; how cool. And while we're at it, let's use every single special effect available in Final Cut Pro – or was it Avid? These jitters, shakes, blurs and flashes, especially when used during talking heads or emotion laden file footage, totally disrespect the experience of the film's subjects. And even worse, the incessant, wall-to-wall music, dull and hypnotic to the max, opens up a giant chasm between the film and the viewer. In the end, a pointless and arty documentary. Look for the Holland film; libraries have it.

To understand how certain groups of individuals work on a very personal level, one must get into the field and experience it for themselves. However, there are some places that filmmakers would not go very often. These places are the fighting grounds between the Bloods and the Crips. But what's astounding enough is that director Stacy Peralta is able to get under the skin of these two gangs and dig up as much personal information as she can.

At beginning of this documentary, viewers will see the progression of how the Crips and the Bloods came to be today and how the mindset of the older generation changed in the ones who came after them. No stone is left unturned here. Even more surprising is how the people who lived through that time tell this story! The audience will not receive a second hand story...they will receive,..the truth because this comes from the people who experienced it.

And the most riveting thing that one will see is actual interviews with Crip and Blood members; current and retired. They tell it how it is and what people should expect if someone walks through their neighborhood and what is being done to correct this problem. I'm curious to even if the producers themselves felt uncomfortable doing this movie. I sure would,...to most, it's the ticket straight to death's door. Not many people are willing to go so easily. It takes a lot of courage. And the most ironic thing about this film is its title and that's because it's true.

All will be revealed in this very serious and yet careful documentary. Once people understand what goes on there, this situation should hopefully dissolve.

Saw this movie last night at Sundance at BAM. I thought that I would get a look at the history, structure, economy, and cultural legacy of gang-life in LA. This movie didn't deliver on any of these fronts. Instead of history it just ran over the broad-strokes of black oppression on the west coast. Instead of gang's organizational structure it just talked a lot about finding a family and not having a father figure. Instead of the economy of drug- selling it just talked about how crack totally messed stuff up. Instead of cultural legacy it just flashed a bunch of pictures of west-coast rappers and had a hip-hop inspired soundtrack.

Throughout the film there are constant montages of hyper-masculine men, showing off their muscles, guns, and clothes. After awhile, we can't help but question the filmmakers leering, homo-erotic/homo-phobic view of these gang-members. We rarely learn anything concrete about them. They rarely tell us particular stories, facts, or credible statistics. Instead we are presented with their hyperbolic exaggerated rants about how tough they are. It reminds me of some of the AA meetings I've attended, where former alcoholics brag about how high, drunk, messed-up they got in a way that seems to relish the very self-destructive aspects of their lives they now pretend to critique. In the end, this is one of those movies that can't get enough of the guns, blood, and violence culture, it pretends to disapprove of.

first off where do you come off yapping about something you know nothing about. no it's not about flashy flashy or just showing off muscles. it's about everyday living. not even the fact of not have a father around when growing up. because if you paid any attention to the movie for a lot of people thats all they know. lets take you for example you grew up the way you did with or without a father around right? well basically thats why you are the way you are because you grew up that way. same here. for many people their fathers and even some mothers was living the life style so what do that leave the child... do you follow me? i truly think you do not need to watch shows like this if you can't understand because actually it's more too it than what you can ever begin to understand. its not by choice its by force. can we help the way we are. and if you gonna be a sorry low self esteem fool & try to degrade the black community of south central Los Angeles based off a movie then i think you need to go and move there and experience it face to face. go & try to live the life. but i can guarantee you this, without even know who you are or ever meeting you in person you will not survive no more than a few minutes... so my point again is it's not a movie its a actual life style for many people and to give you a little more knowledge that movie was made to show the world and let people tell their story that was never told . so you go find a Adam Sander or Jim Carey movie and make your comments off of them.. since you want to judge movies for a living chump...

The movie was presented in order to "educate" the public on the 40 year gang epidemic amongst the black youths of our Los Angeles society. It was, in short, a failure. The inability to show the true cause of gangs (i.e. the gangsters themselves) was flabbergasting. Yes, they were able to eloquently throw around the term "disenfranchised," yet had no clue as to why these characters chose the streets. It boils down to this: Money, power, and (perceived) respect. Nothing more. Racism did not start this problem. Slavery did not start this problem. Their absentee father did not start this problem. There is an easy, high school-level word that can describe gangs perfectly. That word is opportunism. They brought this movie forward to an extremely gullible and impressionable public who believes whatever they see on TV and they failed to show these black gangsters for what they truly are: professional victims. "Nothing is my fault." No accountability. "It's the white man's fault, it's the Cub Scouts' fault, it's the policeman's fault." The "I did not create this, it was created for me" idea is tired and hackneyed. Black people are disproportionately represented in prison? 28%? Perhaps if they decided to stop committing crime in this state, the numbers might even out. Why can't we have a documentary that simply reports the facts, with no agenda? Why must we perpetuate this myth that the black man can do no wrong? That, somehow, it's someone else's fault? I watched this movie in order to gain a deeper perspective when it comes to the gang culture. Instead I just found myself wading in the deeper-than-usual B.S. Congratulations and thanks a bunch. My opinion of (and my hope for) the blacks youths of L.A. has officially faltered.

A truly eye-opening documentary. Like many others, I'm sure, I've always tended to immediately think "bad guys" whenever the terms "Crips," "Bloods," or "gangs" in general comes up. While it does not try to convince us that these L.A. gangs are actually a force of good or anything like that, this film changed my perspective in many ways. No matter how much your background differs for theirs, CBMA makes it difficult not to empathize with the gangs and, to a significant extent, understand their goals and reasons for being. It includes some really provocative examination of the particularly horrible brand of de facto segregation that existed in L.A. throughout the 1900s, something that still lingers on today. Arresting footage of the Watts Riots of 1965 as well as the riots that followed the Rodney King verdict in 1992. Intelligent but easy to follow interviews with a number of current gang members, former members who now work in intervention, and several professors of sociology and related subjects. While the focus is on L.A., it's all very relevant to anywhere else in this country.

Here is what I got out of the film: cops kept the residents of this area bottled up because the surrounding neighborhoods feared what would happen if poor black people began to spread out. In doing this the cops proved to be arrogant, unfeeling and cruel. Eventually, the people in this ghetto formed gangs. At first the idea was safety and self-defense. But somehow this evolved into rival gangs fighting and killing each other. The irony is that the residents of the ghetto became exactly what they feared and despised: an organized force that kept people behind geographical barriers, held power through fear and intimidation and was respected because the members were devoid of compassion and feeling. The gangs used the cops as role models. While it is alleged in this film that cops beat up people simply because they were black, the black gangsters beat up people because of the color of the bandanna in their pocket. Whats the solution? Who says there is a solution?

A riot is shown as a major turning point. All it showed me was that pushing people too far makes them do crazy things. In one scene we see rioters destroying a car. Later they pass a car turned upside-down. So whose cars were they? Some white slum landlord who fled on foot? I doubt it. I think some hapless resident of this neighborhood woke up the next day to find he didn't have a car anymore. And all so rioters could break something. What can you say about people who loot and burn down their own neighborhood? Wouldn't YOU want to contain them? Whats the answer? To me the moral was "get out of the area and don't come back", not "Join a gang and fight".

This film was difficult for me to watch because of the overuse of visual effects. Motion sequences were sped up or run backwards and forwards. Stills used "camera shake" or unnecessary zooms. And everywhere was the "old film" effect where phony edge flare, scratches, jumpy picture and even the effect of the film jamming in the projector and catching fire. This stuff is OK if used very sparingly. When applied to every sequence, it get really tedious. And less hip-hop scratch on the soundtrack would have helped.

Since I have never lived in this neighborhood, I can only guess how non-gang members feel. But somehow I think that a lot of folks who live in the neighborhood shown in the film wish the gang guys would just go away. To me, this film shows that the gangs hurt their own friends and neighbors a lot more than they help.

Crips and Bloods: Made in America (2008)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Director Stacy Peralta does a very good job covering the brutal and deadly battle between rival L.A. gangs the Crips and the Bloods. This documentary looks at why the two sides took off in popularity and what is being done to try and stop the violence.

I thought this was an extremely well-balanced documentary that gave an open and honest look at the subject. We're given quite a bit of history on racism and how South Central L.A. ended up turning into a ghetto when you've got so much rich things surrounding it. The documentary did a great job at covering the rise of the two gangs as well as all the violence that would follow. The issue of poverty and what that plays into is also reviewed.

We get some great interviews with members of both gangs as well as family members who have had loved ones lost to the violence. Forest Whitaker does a very good job with the narration and adds a classy touch to the entire thing.