The military use of children as soldiers continues to disturb all peace loving people as a wrong message is sent by making them go to war. However, a different kind of war is continually being waged in Brazil which is considered to be one of the most dangerous places in the world. It concerns the involvement of young, homeless children in various senseless acts of violence. This contemporary topic has been deftly handled by famous Brazilian director Hector Babenco in his film "Pixote, the law of the weakest" which is brutal yet an honest film about the vicious circle of violence whose victims happen to be children who have all been rejected by their families. Holding family members responsible for the plight of their children, Hector Babenco shows how poor children are forced to choose a criminal career path as they have been abandoned by their family members. Although "Pixote" was made in 1981, it has not aged a bit due to its status as a work of reference documenting the plight of homeless Brazilian children. Some scenes and situations might shock sensitive viewers but "Pixote" doesn't fail to deliver home the message that life is stranger and harsher than filmed images as this film's protagonist Fernando Ramos da Silva was killed in 1987. His death was the result of police brutality, an action which continues to give bad press to Brazil.