Director: Kim Longinotto
Starring: Brenda Myers-Powell
Certification: 15
Running Time: 98 Minutes
DREAMCATCHER (not to be confused with the Stephen King’s 2003 film), is a documentary following the work of a foundation that helps women in prostitution in Chicago. Brenda Myers-Powell works voluntarily at the Dreamcatcher Foundation which tries to save these women but is a hugely difficult task.
The opening of this documentary presents us with beautiful images of Chicago but lurking underneath is years upon years of child abuse, domestic violence and prostitution. We follow Brenda travelling some of the dark and dangerous streets in the South of the city, not taking the women away as it isn’t that easy but giving them condoms to help in any way she can. It’s not just this though as she also gives them a friendly ear, so they can talk about their problems and possibly seek the help they need from Dreamcatcher. Brenda has first-hand experience of a difficult life which led her onto prostitution but she now spends most of her time helping those in her old situation now. Stories of pimps selling their pregnant wives to the streets and women getting stabbed is absolutely shocking, so where Hollywood usually sugarcoats the reality, it’s absolutely vital this documentary gets seen by everyone.
What I found absolutely brilliant is the unobtrusiveness of the director, Kim Longinotto. Everything is played out in real-time, there’s no voiceovers or title cards to say where you are in the film and I think this low-key method of documentary filmmaking makes you feel, as I felt, as if I was there with Brenda. It also allows the person telling their story to not be interrupted – to tell it as it is. There are no boundaries which shocks, with even the most horrific details not edited out. It’s these choices by the director that made Sundance sit up and take notice to presented Longinotto with a deserved award. She presents us a with a reality that we are ignorant of everyday, people that are just trying to survive and find any light at the end of an utterly dark tunnel.
DREAMCATCHER is not for the faint of heart, as by the end you’ll be emotionally drained because of the overload of human suffering. It could be too much to take for some but this powerful documentary is not to be missed.
[usr=4] DREAMCATCHER is available on DVD from 27th April.
