By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 5 cats
Director: Rungano Nyoni
Starring: Boniventure | Brisky | Chichi | Gloria Huwiler | Joytay | Lee | Maggie Mulubwa | Mandalina | Obvious Cube | Patricia Carreira
Country: france, germany, united_kingdom, zambia
Year: 2018
Running time: 93
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6213284/reference
Thom says: “This film is a haunting and unforgettable experience. That it is supposedly based on some sort of reality makes it all that more disturbing. At my age it’s quite hard to shock me in any way but this comes close. 8-year-old girl Shula (Mulubwa) lives in a remote village in Zambia. Following a contrived incident she is accused of witchcraft, put on trial, found guilty, & sent to a Witch Camp where women witches are exiled and controlled totally by men. She undergoes an initiation rite and tethered to a large rock. Because witches supposedly can read minds, change the weather, and do other arcane rituals she is later adopted by a dangerously inept, abusive couple who expect her to perform miracles. Throughout she’s mostly uncommunicative and understandably scared out of her mind. While this might be a story out of Grimm the verisimilitude of the script makes it terrifying that anyone can have so much power over unfortunate women. That the ridiculousness of the situation supplies some macabre laughs finally makes the tragedy of it insurmountable. ”
Julie says: “It took quite a bit to get motivated for this one. Not sure why. Perhaps I thought it would be too serious or too silly or unbelievable… I did not know what to expect.
“What I saw was a mesmerizing, intriguing and beautifully made movie regarding story, acting and cinematography. Great performance by the lead Maggie Mulubwa and the supportings (Dyna Mufuni and Nancy Murilo).
“What is sad is that whether true or not true (I will leave this up to you to google) one can easily imagine how what occurs can be applied in many situations past and present, and it is truly devastating to watch. The movie (performances and the rest) seemed very true to life with a mix of humor, happiness and sadness (proportions not being equal as one can imagine).