| Original Score: 3/5 | Dec 30, 2006

| Original Score: 83/100 | May 13, 2005

Beautifully explains the ongoing Middle East conflict.

Full Review | Original Score: A | Dec 16, 2004

| Original Score: 4/4 | May 22, 2004

If there's one big point to Promises, it's that nothing can change while physical and psychological barriers keep the sides from speaking even one word to each other.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Mar 11, 2003

A profoundly moving document...The filmmakers' refusal to downplay the situation's intractability makes the glimmer of hope the film offers that much more powerful.

| Original Score: 8/10 | Jan 4, 2003

If nothing else, this balanced and moving film is both informative and entertaining.

| Original Score: B | Jan 2, 2003

The children are all so beautiful and smart and it's heartbreaking when they talk about death as casually as they talk about soccer.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Dec 20, 2002

Give Shapiro, Goldman, and Bolado credit for good intentions, but there's nothing here that they couldn't have done in half an hour.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Dec 9, 2002

Too sincere to exploit its subjects and too honest to manipulate its audience.

| Dec 9, 2002

What emerges is an unsettling picture of childhood innocence combined with indoctrinated prejudice. Promises is a compelling piece that demonstrates just how well children can be trained to live out and carry on their parents' anguish.

Full Review | Dec 1, 2002

A gripping documentary that reveals how deep the antagonism lies in war-torn Jerusalem.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Nov 15, 2002

What's so extraordinary about this Oscar-nominated work is that it shows us that conflict through the eyes of seven bright, funny, thoughtful kids, ages 9 to 13, on both sides.

| Original Score: A | Aug 22, 2002

Beautifully crafted and brutally honest, Promises offers an unexpected window into the complexities of prejudice.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/4 | Jul 20, 2002

Promises is one film that's truly deserving of its Oscar nomination.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jul 19, 2002

Even these tales of just seven children seem at times too many, although in reality they are not enough. Every child's story is what matters. This film can only point the way -- but thank goodness for this signpost.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Jul 14, 2002

It deserves to be seen by anyone with even a passing interest in the events shaping the world beyond their own horizons.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Jul 12, 2002

A powerful and heart-rending documentary.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jun 18, 2002

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jun 15, 2002

Every individual will see the movie through the prism of his or her own beliefs and prejudices, but the one thing most will take away is the sense that peace is possible. That, in itself, is extraordinary.

| Original Score: 4/4 | Jun 14, 2002