Despite its title, "God Grew Tired of Us: The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan" is no Sally Struthers-worthy sob story.
The documentary trades in hope and humor, rather than despair.
Directors Christopher Dillon Quinn and Tommy Walker follow Sudanese refugees who are transplanted to America, focusing on three Lost Boys in particular: John Bul Dau, Panther Bior and Daniel Abul Pach, young men who appear to be in their 20s, who are upbeat, well-spoken and funny.
The film takes on a fish-out-of-water "Coming to America" vibe as the Lost Boys adjust to living in an apartment and working minimum-wage jobs, such as in the fast-food industry or retail cashiering.
The Lost Boys riff candidly and humorously on American culture.
Their observations on the commercialization of Christmas, airline food and doughnuts are worthy of Jerry Seinfeld.
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The lightness, however, is always shadowed by the Lost Boys' violent pasts: War separated all of them from their families. One young man speaks of hiding from assassins and burying his family when he was a boy.
In a chillingly biblical-type exodus, young boys fled civil war-torn southern Sudan in the early 1990s to escape a government-backed Sunni genocide of Christians. The film is fuzzy on the details.
Around 12,000 of the boys found a measure of safety, along with abject poverty and malnourishment, in the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya, where they formed a close-knit society and set up their own parliament. The International Rescue Committee has selected close to 4,000 young men to move to the United States since 2001.
The refugees are spread out across the United States, in cities including New York, Pittsburgh — and, although not mentioned in the film, Tucson — where they work to restart their lives and send money home to relatives while also repaying the cost of air travel.
The filmmakers seem to be with the Lost Boys constantly, capturing candid moments that are so smooth they could have come from a Hollywood script.
One Lost Boy embraces his mother in a tearful reunion. Another points to a container of Pepsi and says, "In Africa, we call this Coca-Cola."
Nicole Kidman narrates and helps ease the transitions and fill in the gaps with commentary and background information.
The slices of life are interspersed with formal interviews in which they speculate on their goals and dreams.
What's most striking about the young men is how upbeat they are.
They see themselves not as victims, but as chosen people with limitless potential.
After staring down death, anything life has to offer is wonderful.
The enlightened outlook is infectious, and the "Lost Boys" moniker seems less appropriate as the film rolls on.
They are no longer boys, and they are no longer lost.
God Grew Tired of Us: The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan
***
Rated: PG for some thematic elements and some disturbing images.
Narrator: Nicole Kidman.
Directors: Christopher Dillon Quinn, Tommy Walker.
Family call: Fine for families.
Running time: 89 minutes.
