Bumfights

 

It seems that several heartless men are preying on the desperation of homeless men. Called Bumfights.com, these uncaring men pay homeless men to fight each other and perform other cruel, harmful stunts. These acts are videotaped and the tapes are then sold over the Internet. WARNING: Contains violence, adult language and nudity. Must be 18 to be purchase, parental discretion is strongly advised. International shipping is available. The following is an excerpt from The Las Vegas Review,

It's a brutal video depiction of street life, portrayed through rapid-cut, handheld camera images.

With the Stratosphere looming in the background, a vagrant struggles to escape the punishing punches, kicks and body slams of his attacker. In a flash, the scene changes. Another man standing in a dark alley smacks himself in the head as he realizes his hair is on fire.

The fast-selling video featuring grisly footage of homeless men fighting on the streets of Las Vegas and performing other stunts has angered some advocates for the homeless and alerted authorities to potential crimes by the filmmakers and their subjects.

Las Vegas filmmakers Ray Laticia and Ty Beeson say that in only three weeks they've sold nearly 10,000 copies of their video, "Bumfights: Cause for Concern, Volume 1," some to viewers as far away as Europe. The recent graduates of the film schools of the University of California, Los Angeles and the University of Southern California have marketed the work they describe as a "hilariously shocking" look at "drunk bums fighting" and "bum stunts," using only the Internet and posters around Las Vegas.

"Society has a fascination with homeless people, people living on the streets, almost a perverse fascination," Laticia said. "People don't get a chance to see much of that. We thought it would be exciting to get a glimpse of that kind of life."

The action includes one scene in which a man sustains a broken ankle in a fight. In another, a purported crack addict smokes the drug and defecates on a sidewalk. There is a homeless man extracting his own tooth with a pair of pliers, and another man tattooing the title of the film on his forehead.

Another homeless man, referred to as Rufus the Stunt Bum, performs a series of feats for the camera, including repeatedly ramming his head into a wall and a fast food drive-through menu, riding a shopping cart and a skateboard down a steep incline and spray painting the bedding of other homeless men.

In several scenes producers appear to instigate the action. A segment titled "The Bumhunter" parodies television's "The Crocodile Hunter," with a man in safari clothing binding, gagging, measuring and marking various homeless men on the streets of Las Vegas before "releasing them into their natural habitat."

The 23-year-old filmmakers, who got their idea after witnessing violent altercations among men living on the street, said all of the homeless men appearing in the video did so by their own choice and agreed to the use of their images by signing consent forms. Some of them were compensated for their acts.

"We have a few bums that we've been working with for a while, and they are willing to partake in different nefarious activities for the camera," Laticia said. "And when they do, we either provide them with cash or food or clothing. We don't force anyone."

But Craig Walton, a professor of ethics and policy studies at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, said even if the homeless aren't forced to perform, it's inaccurate to describe people without adequate shelter, food or clothing as having choices.
Source: www.lvrj.com/lvrj_home/2002/May-05-Sun-2023/news/18662641.html

Their 800 number is 800.709.4008. Also, download the videos without making a purchase, the extra bandwidth will eat into their profits.

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Thanks to Jim Bracewell, at The Men's Center.com for the heads-up on this one. We are asking all concerned men and women to send a protest email to Bumfighters at: support@bumfights.com or 702.258.9375 or Bumfights P.O. Box 81888 Las Vegas, NV 89180

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