Living in a peaceful environment, it is almost impossible for us to understand the tribal hatred and barbaric thinking reflected in the film
From the arrogance and barbarism of the young fighters, we see madness and helplessness.
The chaotic team, the miscellaneous clothes, and the guns they held almost as long as their height, looked like a bunch of rabble-rousers, but it was this "rabble-rouser" that alternately covered the charge, anti-sniper shooting and other tactics were carried out with a plank and an eye, making it hard to believe that this was the behavior of a group of children.
When they lose their restraints, when they have a gun in their hands, when they discover that a gun can take the lives of others, when they discover that a gun can force others to obey them and do whatever they are commanded to do, the most evil side of human nature is brazenly exposed, and they rob, shoot, and even rape women who are much taller than them.
"Mad Dog" Johnny is the small leader of such a group, he claims to have been fighting and killing people since he was 10 years old, and when he talks about this, he is filled with a sense of accomplishment and pride, and the gun in his hand allows him to do whatever he wants. In such a life, he became as manic as a mad dog
Almost bite at the sight of people. His subordinate "No Good Idea" is also almost a crazy guy, although he looks even younger than "Mad Dog" Johnny, and only when he perseveres carrying a pig as a trophy can we vaguely feel the childishness hidden in him. As they wage the so-called just war on their toes, the real profiteers behind them are snickering sinisterly and triumphantly, while the "warriors" argue over a pig
When the Mad Dog wants a little lust to warm the heart that is cold because of death and blood, the out-of-control life has given him no chance to choose, and when his "woman" falls under his own gun, he finally sheds tears, but it is too late.
Let's talk about the structure of the film itself
In addition to the plot line of "Mad Dog" Johnny, the director also arranged a plot development line of a girl who caused the tragic death of her father due to a rebellion to find her lost brother, and the two main lines advanced almost parallelly, occasionally crossing each other. The director probably wants to use the girl's perspective to interpret the inner world of the "mad dog" and witness the madness, but because the time of the collision of the two lines is too small and too short, and the dramatic conflict is not enough, we can hardly feel the inner world of the characters except for the cruel killing that we can see in the picture
Another regret is that the director did not arrange a conflict between the "Mad Dog" and his team and the government army, but only weakly explained the dispute between the "Mad Dog" and the peacekeeping force. As one of the many baby soldiers produced in the African environment, it is inevitable that there will be a war with the government army, and it is conceivable that the ending will inevitably be cruel, precisely because there is less such contradiction and conflict, making the film look a little small, lacking a stronger impact, whether visual or spiritual.
What needs to be emphasized is that the three small actors who play "Mad Dog", "No Good Idea" and "Butterfly" are arrogant and cold, and their performances are very prominent, almost giving people a sense of realism in the documentary, which is really valuable.
AIDS, civil wars, coups, hunger and poverty have long been almost synonymous with Africa. Due to the complex ethnic relations and the influence of the colonial rule of western powers, many African countries have frequent civil wars and people's livelihoods. Casually pulling a bunch of people and getting a few guns dares to fight with the government, and the government army is often helpless, which is a unique phenomenon in Africa. Directors of the so-called democratic world in the West often use a tragic and condescending posture to record the suffering of Africa in the language of film, and then use this to win an award or something, which has become a habit and a shortcut. But suffering Africa remains miserable, and rebels and government forces remain a common word in the world news
This group of children has one common trait, madness. Kill like crazy, roar wildly, do whatever you want. And for me, the biggest shock came from their unconscious perverted psychology