The House I Live In
User Score
7.7 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 6 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 6
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 6
  3. Negative: 1 out of 6

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  1. LamontRaymond
    Oct 17, 2012
    5
    It's a good documentary in that there are so many issues addressed therein that require examination (and often indignation), but it goes a bit too far and fails to even posit alternatives. I love that they highlight the difference in sentencing guidelines between powder and crack cocaine. Completely asinine, even if you don't believe that it's targeting non-whites. The other issue that I feel is huge is the manipulation of federal housing assistance - ex-cons were denied housing assistance for all but the "red" zones on the city maps - essentially the ghettos. What was not discussed in this film was exactly how the experts would deal with drug dealers in absence of jail sentences. And when the son of the Columbia professor says that he can't raise 2 kids on $8 an hour, the father should have said, "YES, YOU CAN!..... It's a start! Get 2 jobs paying $8 each, and make your dollars last!" It seems that personal accountability is not given enough weight in the discussion. And comparing the US war on drugs to the Holocaust was disgusting. I know there are elements in common between genocide and marginalizing a group of people for actually doing wrong (buying and using drugs), but David Simon (who I love from "the Wire") goes too far when he suggests that the US policy is becoming "Kill the Poor." Hard-working poor folks who don't commit crimes? Those are the people killed in Germany, Poland, Cambodia, and Russia. They don't go to prison and get killed in the U.S. It's a bridge too far, and takes away from many of the valuable lessons of the film.… Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
77 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 24 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 24
  3. Negative: 0 out of 24
  1. New Orleans Times-Picayune
    Reviewed by: Mike Scott
    Nov 30, 2012
    100
    The House I Live In is not a comfortable film to consider in any respect, but without discomfort it's hard to feel anger - and without anger, it's hard to imagine that anything will ever be done about it.
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  2. The Guardian
    Reviewed by: Peter Bradshaw
    Nov 25, 2012
    80
    Among Jarecki's interviewees is David Simon (author of The Wire) who is incandescent with contempt for the system.
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  3. Miami Herald
    Reviewed by: Rene Rodriguez
    Nov 9, 2012
    75
    The House I Live In is a work of journalism, not propaganda: Jarecki has done his research and leaves it to you to decide what to make of it.
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