Joey (2004)

"Joey" is an intimate and vivid portrayal of the lives of children growing up amid gangs and violence in South Los Angeles. Children who live in neighborhoods which do not allow them to enjoy the simple liberties of life which we all take for granted. Children, of all ages, who are shot not because they are in gangs but just because they are living their lives, standing in front of their house, taking out the trash or coming home from church like thirteen-year-old Joseph Swift. Joseph Swift lived in a neighborhood in South Los Angeles where violent gang bangers bully and murder freely and sometimes without consequences in part because police are overwhelmed and witnesses intimidated. "Joey" revolves around the shooting of Joseph Swift and his family and friends who are in a constant struggle with gangs. "Joey" puts a human face on a growing problem.