Raetsonwe Redundant and unnecessary.

ChanBot i must have seen a different film!!

Portia Hilton Blistering performances.

Quiet Muffin This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

juliintenn SPOILER: I quote the movie directly in my comments below...2 stars.....The two stars I gave to this film were because of the actual glimpse of real life I was given, showing me the nature of the Orange County housing market, the Hope School and the beacon of light it brings to the community. The reason I even felt compelled to review it was the nature of the questions and the demeanor of the woman who was conducting all the interviews in the film. Honestly at first I wasn't sure if she was for real! The questions she posed to the adults were fine, but the way she spoke to the children made my blood boil She was shaming and her lack of experience with interacting with children was obvious. She posed questions that the kids could never answer or that would make them face the already shamed state of homelessness. These were the questions: "Where did you get that shirt? {the shirt said "Nantucket"which we all know is a very wealthy northeastern town/tourist area. A place he knew nothing about. She just needed to point out something and almost shame him for having it as a donation...totally lacks tact. After the little boy responded "donation" she said "you look good!" "It looks good on you!""What's the worst part about being a homeless kid" and she asked this of 6 year old little Josh Brewster. The thing is, he is homeless, he is 6, and he doesn't feel the weight of the world like adults do...he still goes to school, he still plays with his friends, he has meals and clothes and a roof. He made me so proud when he answered "When people ask me dumb questions!" EXACTLY little guy...good for you. You don't know what the worst thing is about being homeless...you are a little kid. Why doesn't that lady just stop talking to you like you're an adult.She said to Ms. Brewster "you work in the happiest place on earth {speaking about DisneyLand} is your family the happiest family on earth?? WTF? I mean really lady?? This is so shaming and upsetting, it lacks tact and neutrality. And Ms Brewster responded, said "kinda sorta" - You know what makes you the happiest family on earth? It doesn't come from the places you are...the things you have...I applaud you for saying "kinda sorta" Because this interviewer has NO IDEA how to relate to you, these questions are absolutely stupid.I couldn't hardly watch it all the way through. My heart broke for the kids, and she just added fuel to the fire. This subject could have been explored with much more compassion if she had been replaced with someone who had a mother's heart and training with children and their fragile hearts. Shame on you guys for not preparing the interviewer more, she really dropped the ball.

lizzyblueyez I watch this documentary today and it was very sad. I knew what the subject matter would be (homeless children/families) but was unprepared for the way it made me feel.It was the children that pulled at my heartstrings because they were thrown into being homeless and living at that terrible motel.They had to learn about death,crime,poverty, all before some of them were even pre-teens.The look in their faces when they were being interviewed, there was a hopeless expression.When some were asked what were they looking forward to as they grew up; a few of them sadly replied "nothing". It's as if they believed their lives meant nothing and never would. No child should feel that way. I still can't understand how America the richest country in the world has children and families that live this way.

maldez This was a gritty topic that had the potential to be as good as other HBO documentaries in the category ("Aslyum", "The Best Hotel on Skid Row") but came nowhere close. It had no style, no technique, and little cinematic effect. Basically, it looked like the result of somebody wandering around with a camcorder. There was no narration, which set it back immediately. "The Best Hotel on Skid Row" was narrated by Charles Bukowski (poet, novelist and short story writer) with a distinguishing gravelly voice that set the tone for the low-end world of skid hotels that the viewer getting a tour of. "Homeless: The Motel Kids of Orange County" was like watching a home movie.

jbarnes-10 I watched Homeless over the weekend and this is a hard film to review.First, there are really two stories here. One, the needless suffering of the children and two the parents that got them into this mess.Several families are featured in the film all living in the same run down, crime and drug filled, by the week motel. Located right across the street from Disneyland,in Anaheim CA,it's location is ironic. Bottom of the barrel on one side, Land of Enchantment on the other. By the end of the film it's pretty clear which kids have a fighting chance to escape this mess and which kids are probably going to be in jail by the time their 14.Of the families featured, only two of them seemed like functioning family units. You see closeness and love and actual parenting going on. Despite the circumstances the kids seem happy and supportive of their siblings and they take their chores (like washing dishes and taking out the trash) very seriously.The other parents are(to put it bluntly)losers who should never have had kids and should probably have their kids taken from them. One selfish mother insists on keep 4 dogs in the small filthy room with her and her three kids, this tells you just how important the kids are to her, if you don't have a dollar to your name, you get rid of the dogs. I just wanted to slap her in the face.Both of her sons already show signs of aggressive, acting out behavior and she just dismisses it as nothing. In the end her oldest son breaks into another room at the motel and steals something leading to their eviction. The angry reaction of her younger son to this news pretty much sums up the life he is going to lead (the mother is also so obese that she could never get a better job then the $9.00 one she has).The only bright spot these kids have is a special school for homeless kids. This part of the film does instill some hope that at least some of these kids might make it out of their current situations without to much harm and have better lives later on. All of the kids love their school and it is the one constant in their lives.The filmmakers give us very little back-story on how these families ended up at the motel. But it is fair to assume that these were families already living on the edge financially and were working poor to begin with. There were no regular middle class suburban families featured as I don't think there were any at the motel. Most of the residents seemed like gang bangers and white trash, so for the half way normal families the place is a living hell.Now almost four years later I would love to know what happened to some of the families and if they were able to get a home and get out of the motel.