Road to Hope

Caring for a dying parent has to be one of most heart-wrenching jobs in the world. Yet the three children/young adults featured this documentary, along with others who stories are also told, persevere. They remain hopeful that there will be people to care for them and about them.

These are heartwarming stories, yet are told without sentimentality. There's no glossing over the tough parts of life and death in this film. However, the overriding message is that hope can - and does - exist, despite extreme poverty. And that there are caring people in the world. The our news feeds on social media may be filled with doom and destruction. But documentaries such as this reveal caring in the most unlikely places.

This is an outstanding story of the plight of children in Africa that are impacted by the death of a parent or both of their parents. It is powerful and provides a unique perspective. The rural and city landscapes shown in the film have a crisp quality. There are good color contrasts that bring out the rich hues of the African landscape. Overall production quality is superior, and this helps deliver the messaging of the film. It appears that few if any special effects were utilized to enhance the story. The stories of children and their families flow throughout the factual messages that are presented. It is a documentary about a topic that is not widely discussed, and this film brings to light the importance of the work of the Palliative Care Association of Uganda and Center for Hospice Care, its partner in the United States.