Adolfo Perez Esquivel: Rivers of Hope

2015 • 77 minutes

About this movie

“Adolfo Perez Esquivel: RIVERS OF HOPE” is the story of Latin America over the past eighty years as seen through the eyes of one man. Nobel Peace Prize winner Esquivel shares his journey illustrating the ongoing struggle for social justice across Latin America.

Ratings and reviews

The pitch for this film is "the story of Latin America over the past eighty years as seen through the eyes of one man." OK, that is pretty breathless, even if that one man is a Nobel Prize-winning peace activist. The best thing I can say about this film is, if you want to know about Adolfo Perez Esquivel, more or less in his own words, watch this. If you want to know about Latin America, this film is the worst sort of nonsense - there is very little context, an un-stated political and quasi-religious agenda, little attention to the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo and others who struggled with Argentina's "dirty war" - the military and political campaign against the left, and virtually nothing about the rest of Latin America, aside from Perez's trips to various bishops' conferences and meetings with indigenous leaders (cue film of Perez and others in "native" gear). As a promotional pic, this has its moments. For those who want to know more about Latin America, would not recommend.

Film was very educational... But it felt more like a timeline of facts. It failed to induce much emotion into a story of a great man living during very troubling times.

This wonderfully crafted documentary biopic is a story of how one person, dedicated to peace and intolerant of tyranny, can embolden others to action through creativity, indefatigable commitment, and a good heart. I'm no socialist and definitely no Marxist, but this Libertarian admires a braveheart like Esquivel. The story moves along apace, aided by a convincing story line, and the cinematography is pure and direct. Great job. James Fallon