I was really hoping to hear more about the lives of the people that they interviewed for this film. It felt like they sort of just brushed the surface with everything they asked and what they showed from these people's lives. The people they chose to interview are very interesting, but we only get to hear a few things about them throughout the film and I never really felt like we truly got to know them and what they experience. While this was interesting and entertaining enough, I just felt like they could have done so much more with it. Less long camera shots with music playing and more in depth character study of these people who are dealing with homelessness could have made this so much better.
69 Reviews
Potential that never really comes to fruition
paulvansommeren29 November 2021
An interesting insight into several homeless communities around the USA. We follow several homeless people, but never really get to know any of them or follow them for a while. What's left is a superficial documentary with just a few too many drone shots and time lapses.
Poignant but lacks depth..
samabc-319524 December 2021
" In the darkness before the dawn
In the swirling of this storm
When I'm rolling with the punches and hope is gone
Leave a light, a light on..."
- Coldplay's Midnight
Totally pointless documentary
Nilli4 December 2021
Should have been trimmed or expanded
CubsandCulture14 February 2022
This short provides an impressionistic take on the challenges of homelessness on the West Coast. It's a well done-cinematically-panoramic view of the issue. It focuses on several persons and treats their story with dignity. It also hints at or states some causes of homelessness as well as ways we are trying to tackle the problem. But it isn't very insightful.
I think the film could have been vastly improved by either cutting it down by 20 minutes-the overall artistic point is conveyed in that amount of time. Or they could have fleshed this out into a feature by getting some historical context and expert interviews. As it is now it is too shallow for its runtime.
I think the film could have been vastly improved by either cutting it down by 20 minutes-the overall artistic point is conveyed in that amount of time. Or they could have fleshed this out into a feature by getting some historical context and expert interviews. As it is now it is too shallow for its runtime.
So many good parts but ultimately should have been better
Jblum522 February 2022
Homelessness is such a serious problem in our country that I got very excited to see an Oscar nominated documentary on the subject. We live in a country where the media sees more value in billionaires going to space than helping out the homeless. The issue here is the film just needed to be more focused.
The start of the film begins as a "humans of New York" style interviews of homeless people. The stories are gripping and powerful , and the film abandons this. Then we get a day in the life of someone.. and the film abandons this idea pretty quickly. It touches very briefly on the political aspect of the issue but doesn't really go into much depth. All of these pieces could have been so fascinating but none are explored to any real satisfaction.
I think it's an interesting watch but maybe should be a mini series or longer movie.
The start of the film begins as a "humans of New York" style interviews of homeless people. The stories are gripping and powerful , and the film abandons this. Then we get a day in the life of someone.. and the film abandons this idea pretty quickly. It touches very briefly on the political aspect of the issue but doesn't really go into much depth. All of these pieces could have been so fascinating but none are explored to any real satisfaction.
I think it's an interesting watch but maybe should be a mini series or longer movie.
An empathetic portrayal, lacking scale.
olliemcdaid18 May 2023
Having watched this 2 years after it's release, I'm deeply saddened that the issues addressed in Lead Me Home have lacked the dramatic change required.
The documentary moves from poignancy to perturbation conveying a slow anxious feeling, which is remarkably lifelike. The experiences of the people involved are well-considered and become central to the flow. This documentary should be commended for its delicate touch & empathy in this regard.
It's greatest strength also holds it back, at times it fails to address issues directly. California experienced higher increase in homelessness than any other state in the 21st century. It even had a 31% rise from 2010-2020 whilst the national homelessness dropped by 18%. Any governmental characters in this film speak only in platitudes of change. A lack of overarching analysis holds this back from representing the true scale of the issues, particularly on the west coast.
Humanising the characters who bare the brunt of late stage capitalism is a necessary function, but a nuanced approach here could have reenforced rather than detracted.
Overall this documentary is worth watching for it's emotional sensibilities & empathic approach to homelessness. However, the issues of NIMBYism, abuse & scale weren't direct enough in this documentary. It's worth watching as a fly-on-the-wall documentary that opens a dialogue about the extremely difficult and horrifying conditions of homelessness.
The documentary moves from poignancy to perturbation conveying a slow anxious feeling, which is remarkably lifelike. The experiences of the people involved are well-considered and become central to the flow. This documentary should be commended for its delicate touch & empathy in this regard.
It's greatest strength also holds it back, at times it fails to address issues directly. California experienced higher increase in homelessness than any other state in the 21st century. It even had a 31% rise from 2010-2020 whilst the national homelessness dropped by 18%. Any governmental characters in this film speak only in platitudes of change. A lack of overarching analysis holds this back from representing the true scale of the issues, particularly on the west coast.
Humanising the characters who bare the brunt of late stage capitalism is a necessary function, but a nuanced approach here could have reenforced rather than detracted.
Overall this documentary is worth watching for it's emotional sensibilities & empathic approach to homelessness. However, the issues of NIMBYism, abuse & scale weren't direct enough in this documentary. It's worth watching as a fly-on-the-wall documentary that opens a dialogue about the extremely difficult and horrifying conditions of homelessness.
An American tale.
Cinema_Fan3 December 2021
Homelessness; the scourge of society and the hardship of those unfortunate to suffer this social-disease. The 9th of January 1933 was a poignant moment in the world of homelessness as George Orwell's book "Down and Out in Paris and London" was published; an undercover exposé of the rough-sleepers, tramps and vagabonds within these two cities, minus the tents but doss-houses and back-street life alike.
Today, and in particular, here, the States of California and Washington, in the United States of America, these concerns for the destitute are ever more relevant as fatefulness within a system of capitalism, plutocracy and the proceeds of a banking system, housing market and health care takes no prisoners. The tip of the iceberg. An undercurrent of unjust and unfavourable statistics that blight good-society and deliver hopelessness to the unfortunates. Lead Me Home is here to shed light on a dark underbelly of American culture gone oh-so-wrong.
The independent body The National Alliance to End Homelessness is committed to thwarting and ending homelessness within the United States makes claim that by January 2020 some 580,466 people were suffering homelessness in the USA. Pedro Kos and Jon Shenk have linked three West Coast cities (Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle) via the form of oratorical description and visual enlightenment, from those living this lonely road, rather than the medium of literature. We see them all here and for differing reasons; narcotics, family tragedies, ex- veterans, the mentally ill, health issues, abuse and those who have fallen from the conventional lifestyle due to predicaments out of their control, giving their heart-felt account of, as the disenfranchised, sat front-of-camera, a wanting evaluation to a higher social standing; a home. Security. Worthfulness. And rightly so.
This short feature dwells more on the visual narrative that we see, in contrast, to those living their conventional lifestyle in warm, safe environments such as homes and apartments, living their daily lives; whilst the clear reality of the oratorical description deliberates on the tent-cities of skid row. The contradiction is subtle, but, also, is its underlined visual message; those who have. Those who need.
A pro-active stance is undertaken by said Directors'; we bear witness to the NIMBY (an acronym for Not In My Back Yard) mentality that shows how this conventional lifestyle, this comfortable lifestyle, chooses to become indifferent, to be ignorant of the woes and reason of this underclass when a Shelter is proposed near homes of those wanting to turn away from the street-life. No help here, move along.
The combination of all narratives, attitudes and conclusions are as dividing as they are uniting in their stark message. This contradiction is also a plight of contemporary thinking and an echo of how societies have always been to those pushed out, fallen through or simply dropped out of conventional society. With a soundtrack to elevate the visual of overhead shots and up-close-and-personnel monologues there is a tenderness of conveyance of the dire predicaments of these human beings. Each having a backstory that shocks and oozes empathetic alarm. Short in stature is Lead Me Home but the message is both deep and far reaching; Down and Out In Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle; An exposé of an American tale.
Today, and in particular, here, the States of California and Washington, in the United States of America, these concerns for the destitute are ever more relevant as fatefulness within a system of capitalism, plutocracy and the proceeds of a banking system, housing market and health care takes no prisoners. The tip of the iceberg. An undercurrent of unjust and unfavourable statistics that blight good-society and deliver hopelessness to the unfortunates. Lead Me Home is here to shed light on a dark underbelly of American culture gone oh-so-wrong.
The independent body The National Alliance to End Homelessness is committed to thwarting and ending homelessness within the United States makes claim that by January 2020 some 580,466 people were suffering homelessness in the USA. Pedro Kos and Jon Shenk have linked three West Coast cities (Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle) via the form of oratorical description and visual enlightenment, from those living this lonely road, rather than the medium of literature. We see them all here and for differing reasons; narcotics, family tragedies, ex- veterans, the mentally ill, health issues, abuse and those who have fallen from the conventional lifestyle due to predicaments out of their control, giving their heart-felt account of, as the disenfranchised, sat front-of-camera, a wanting evaluation to a higher social standing; a home. Security. Worthfulness. And rightly so.
This short feature dwells more on the visual narrative that we see, in contrast, to those living their conventional lifestyle in warm, safe environments such as homes and apartments, living their daily lives; whilst the clear reality of the oratorical description deliberates on the tent-cities of skid row. The contradiction is subtle, but, also, is its underlined visual message; those who have. Those who need.
A pro-active stance is undertaken by said Directors'; we bear witness to the NIMBY (an acronym for Not In My Back Yard) mentality that shows how this conventional lifestyle, this comfortable lifestyle, chooses to become indifferent, to be ignorant of the woes and reason of this underclass when a Shelter is proposed near homes of those wanting to turn away from the street-life. No help here, move along.
The combination of all narratives, attitudes and conclusions are as dividing as they are uniting in their stark message. This contradiction is also a plight of contemporary thinking and an echo of how societies have always been to those pushed out, fallen through or simply dropped out of conventional society. With a soundtrack to elevate the visual of overhead shots and up-close-and-personnel monologues there is a tenderness of conveyance of the dire predicaments of these human beings. Each having a backstory that shocks and oozes empathetic alarm. Short in stature is Lead Me Home but the message is both deep and far reaching; Down and Out In Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle; An exposé of an American tale.
Emotional
PedroPires9014 March 2022
I like this one. For some this can be seen as poverty porn or exploitation, but I think this kind of films/docs are necessary to show us a different reality and a reality that...should not be a reality anymore. Especially in the US. Honestly, I don't know what the hell you all are doing wrong to have so many people on this situation (or the health costs, or the guns problems or...), being the most powerful and 1st economy in the world...
Interesting POV from these people and I must admit that some looks in the eyes of these people where authentic punches in my soul.
Interesting POV from these people and I must admit that some looks in the eyes of these people where authentic punches in my soul.
A 40 minute trailer for nothing
scottyent12 December 2021
This a very serious topic that I was very happy to see someone made a documentary on. However, it was a really terrible "film." It's like someone got a drone and a right to some good music, and made a 40 minute trailer/montage.
It was so disjointed with zero depth. They even had some great stories in front of them, but didn't follow any of them in any coherent way. What's worse, there was zero exploration of the causes or what can be done.
It was like a trailer for a more in depth documentary series where they dive into the situation, but there isn't a series. It's just this. I genuinely don't know if this helps or hurts the problem of homelessness.
It was so disjointed with zero depth. They even had some great stories in front of them, but didn't follow any of them in any coherent way. What's worse, there was zero exploration of the causes or what can be done.
It was like a trailer for a more in depth documentary series where they dive into the situation, but there isn't a series. It's just this. I genuinely don't know if this helps or hurts the problem of homelessness.
No silver platter.
jchifi712 December 2021
Other reviewers criticised the lack of depth or storytelling. For me, that was the beauty of this documentary. It was an honest example of the huge difficulty that faces people who are homeless, and the community workers trying to provide support. Solutions are rarely easy and we are often left with many questions to be answered and unmet needs. Perhaps those who didn't like the doco were left feeling like the situation wasn't resolved. Perhaps that was the point. An extra 20 minutes sharing the interviewees solutions to the crisis would have made it a 10.
Good short film showing reality
mountains-145075 December 2021
I just got back from a couple days in Seattle. The struggle is real. Will say I was disappointed they don't ask people in the interviews, (1) if they're on drugs and (2) what they have done to attempt to get out of their situation
From being friends with homeless people and drug addicts there's a direct correlation. People sometimes have to choose to make life better for themselves. Have to choose to move somewhere cheaper. Have to choose to not want to be on drugs.
I fully support giving people a HAND UP but a constant Hand out is just wrong. I totally get that we live in the richest country on the planet but nobody in the world is entitled to a better life if you're unwilling to change your situation (this comes from a guy that was in prison for a couple years in my early 20s). You can blame society or you can make a change.
I will say there most definitely are people that are incapable of taking care of themselves either mentally or physically and as a society I fully support taking care of people on that situation.
From being friends with homeless people and drug addicts there's a direct correlation. People sometimes have to choose to make life better for themselves. Have to choose to move somewhere cheaper. Have to choose to not want to be on drugs.
I fully support giving people a HAND UP but a constant Hand out is just wrong. I totally get that we live in the richest country on the planet but nobody in the world is entitled to a better life if you're unwilling to change your situation (this comes from a guy that was in prison for a couple years in my early 20s). You can blame society or you can make a change.
I will say there most definitely are people that are incapable of taking care of themselves either mentally or physically and as a society I fully support taking care of people on that situation.
Waste of time
rngdsctkf4 December 2021
There was no depth to this. A lot of panned out shots, melancholy music. It just dragged on. Hard to engage and follow. Didn't cover the reasons why homelessness is so big I'm that state & the services available. It just felt like it covered a lot of different things but achieved nothing.
Decent
febeneels16 February 2022
Overall it had some emotional impact and the cinematography was pretty good if we overlook some weird choices here and there. I just feel like it should have been longer or shorter. You get a lot of just shots of these camps which off course help show the size of the problem but sometimes felt a bit unnecessary. Instead of that i feel like we could have been more focused on either solutions/organisations who help these people or the people themself. Or it should have been a shortfilm from about 20 minutes to highlight the problem. The length is just a bit akward and it feels like they zoned in on the wrong things and neglected other aspects that could have been delved in more.
I must say i was getting a bit skeptical already in the beginning where they state they filmed from 2017 to 2020 but they only had 40 minutes of film. They must have had tons of footage so I don't quite understand the choice too make it so short. Especially if you consider some of the stories we hear from the homeless people. They could have done way more interesting things with this movie.
I must say i was getting a bit skeptical already in the beginning where they state they filmed from 2017 to 2020 but they only had 40 minutes of film. They must have had tons of footage so I don't quite understand the choice too make it so short. Especially if you consider some of the stories we hear from the homeless people. They could have done way more interesting things with this movie.
Visually impressive
suncicalazanski28 January 2023
The authors of the documentary have chosen to show us the raw emotion of homelessness. It doesn't provide too much inside into strategies and tactics of dealing with homelessness on a structural or personal level. It does however provide us the emotional and visual perspective of it. It shows tears, mud, dirt, frustration, hopelesness and more important strong will, spirit and the willingness to live and to survive in this cruel world. I liked the emotional side of it as it has touched me deepely. Sometimes less is more and for me it was crucial that the rawness of the experience doesn't get lost in the words and politics.
Good but I needed More
griscowsky27 March 2022
I am always trying to educate myself on social issues and problems worldwide. I was excited to watch a documentary on Netflix about homelessness, following people experiencing this. I was very disappointed in how the directors did this however. So many pointless pan-overs of the city with a terrible song playing in the background. I ended up skipping most of them.
The best part of this documentary was listening to these people's stories and hearing how and why they were on the streets. How they accessed basic needs like food, hygiene, and a safe place to sleep at night-the one thing they needed to get off the street. I sincerely hope Netflix gave all of these people an envelope full of money for being brave enough to tell their story to countless people. Gosh knows Netflix rolls in millions each year and can part with a few thousand.
The best part of this documentary was listening to these people's stories and hearing how and why they were on the streets. How they accessed basic needs like food, hygiene, and a safe place to sleep at night-the one thing they needed to get off the street. I sincerely hope Netflix gave all of these people an envelope full of money for being brave enough to tell their story to countless people. Gosh knows Netflix rolls in millions each year and can part with a few thousand.
The Criminalization of Homelessness
Skorpyos24 February 2022
This doc was more a trailer for what could be a series-long take on homelessness. It's a complex topic made possible by the corrupt and vulturistic corporatist society that we live in today, where humans are seen as a means to maximize profit. When corporations control governments, humans pay the price.
The documentary was successful at giving a face and a story to the term "homeless", in an effort to teach us that behind the statistics there are real people with real problems and real stories. Homelessness is not a lifestyle that people choose, no matter how many times that myth is perpetuated. Homelessness is mentally devastating, dangerous for people, and affects us all.
The documentary was successful at giving a face and a story to the term "homeless", in an effort to teach us that behind the statistics there are real people with real problems and real stories. Homelessness is not a lifestyle that people choose, no matter how many times that myth is perpetuated. Homelessness is mentally devastating, dangerous for people, and affects us all.
Did Not Tell the Story
jrbrowzer16 December 2021
This is such an important topic, yet these "mock-umentarians" chose dramatic scenic time lapse skylines over interviews with mental health, housing and social worker professionals. Was looking forward to learning about how people get on the streets and what kept them there, and instead was met with stirring emotional chords and zip substance.
Thought it was wonderfully done
jenny-jd3 January 2022
People are giving this film bad reviews based on the fact that it is short and not extensively deep. I thought it was really well done as a glimpse of what may allow people to be able to relate to these people and this problem that they have encountered of finding yourself to be homeless. I think the reason they kept it light is because a lot of people don't even like to look at or think about the subject, a lot of people think that they know a lot about it without actually having any information and do not wish to learn about it, so I feel that they tried to make this a nice light introduction to having a different viewpoint from the ignorant viewpoint that a lot of people already feel justified in having. I thought it had a very nice message and was a nice watch, and I'm glad I watched it. A lot of our society is made up of people who are very inhuman now, that's why this is getting a low rating.
Insulting and Awful
baldmarc125 March 2022
Basically, 35 minutes of stock drone photography with a 5-minute news package peppered in. "A short film that follows several people..." Follows? A better term would be "watched them cross the street." They were not followed in any way. Their stories were barely shared at all. "Spark national conversation..." How? By showing 30 seconds of a town meeting? And the fact this is nominated for an Academy Award really blows my mind!
Short documentary on a difficult subject done in a compassionate way
jillc052418 December 2021
I wasn't sure if I wanted to see this at all. Live in a city where I see it everyday and it has gotten WORSE since the Reagan era, the 1980s, because of no supportive housing, stagnant wages, and lack of mental health facilities. Income inequality makes people cold and heartless. HERE'S A TYPICAL STORY A family member who worked full time since she was 15 for decades. She was an excellent worker, held responsible positions but became disabled due to neurological problems that impact her speech, memory and she has seizures. Now, she only makes $1400 per month on disability and even WITH "low income" housing - if she COULD afford it - she would barely make the rent. Her one companion is her dog and most places don't allow pets. What a life! Of course, now it is up to family members to help her out but we are struggling too. Bezos, Musk could end this misery and NOT even miss the money instead of polluting space with their carbon dioxide rocket ships.
Film school visual activism
tkyaow1 December 2021
A great cinematic example of modern day activism where "raising awareness" takes the place of saying anything of actual import. All camera work, no substance, Lead Me Home engenders little sympathy for its characters because the viewer is too distracted by the fact that it's shot like some masters in art thesis project, or Pacific Northwest hipster music video. Shame.
Very simple, but still hard to watch
cianodwyer21 December 2021
I see lots of critics. It isn't out to win awards I don't think, but rather give a glimpse. A glimpse is plenty..it pulls
"free market" capitalism's pants down. What lies beneath. To even scratch the surface shows how disgraceful society has become to its members. Who the hell do we think we are we now that this is normal?
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