Kids v. the System

KIDS FOR CASH (B+) -  Producer Robert May ("The War Tapes") steps behind the camera as director for this fascinating examination of the "Kids for Cash" scandal in which a Pennsylvania judge rabidly sentenced teens to a juvenile facility in which he had a financial interest.

Kids tell heartbreaking stories about spending their high school years locked up for rather inoffensive offenses such as fighting in school. Judge Mark Ciavarella frequently imposed his sentences in instances when the kids were denied legal representation. (They signed waivers, likely not fully comprehending the consequences.)

Ciavarella connived with another judge, Michael Conahan, in receiving finders' fees for locating the real estate on which the juvenile facility was built. Director May teams up with a local newspaper reporter who breaks down the story and follows the money. A crudely scrawled flow chart does the trick well.

Ciavarella, surprisingly sits for interviews here, perhaps thinking he was going to beat the rap and convince the world of his innocence. (No luck; he is serving a 28-year prison term after being undercut by Conahan, who cut a deal and got 17 years.) May cleverly paces the film, and it's riveting to watch the judge unravel.

But it's the kids and the parents who drive this story home. After doing their time in juvie, these young adults continue to struggle to put their lives back together. One, it turns out, ended up back in prison. Another, though, had a tragic ending, and a scene in which his mother confronts Ciavarella outside the courthouse is chilling.

This is a story that begged to be told, and May is up to the task.

PATEMA INVERTED (C-minus) - Strictly for kids only, this sappy anime feature follows the adventures of the title girl who escapes her underground world only to find herself in a world in which she is upside down and must be restrained lest she float up into the sky.

Some sort of global catastrophe has inverted the world's gravity. One set of people live above ground in lush surroundings but in a dystopian conformity, while Patema and others were confined to a dank underground. When Patema slips above ground, she is saved by a cute boy, Age (pronounced like Agee), whose father died trying to defy the authorities and explore the heavens. Age tries to keep her safe from the evil leader.

Part "The Lego Movie," part "Speed Racer," with the plot of a "Scooby Doo" episode, "Patema Inverted" follows a predictable story arc. Wise elders spout platitudes, and youngsters not only seek to escape and survive but also to change the system. Think they'll do it?

BONUS TRACK
The "Kids for Cash" trailer: