A combination of unwieldy social consciousness ,melodrama, and juvenile story-telling and cinematic sensibilities, Manito is a reminder that great, simple filmmaking is NOT the result of film-school regurgitation. Any time a film comes out that deals with this same subject matter with relatively the same handling, conclusions, and a slightly different script, it is regarded as high art and hailed by critics. Sorry, folks, it's been done before, and you're not fooling me. While I appreciate the fact that Manito didn't try to come up with some false, hokey solution to the most complex of life's problems (Good Will Hunting), it fails to give any more depth to the story. Some of the acting was good, some of the writing was excellent, but it's a familiar chord progression in this sad, sad song. For gritty hyperrealism, watch Mean Streets.
Review of Manito
