Beasts of no Nation Review (2015)

Beasts of no Nation

  Better late than never, right? Today I review Beasts of No Nation which I actually saw several weeks ago. As usual, I'll talk about my expectations going in. I knew this movie was set in Africa, that it starred Idris Elba, and that it had something to do with wars against tribes. Boy, was there a lot more to it than that.

  One name: Abraham Attah. This kid needs to be put in several movies after this. Debuting in his first feature film, this actor absolutely blew me away. There was never a single second where I doubted that he was this character and, in my opinion, he even out shined Idris Elba. Everyone in this film did brilliant.

  What I really loved about this film is the way it really brings out the humanity of people from Third World countries who are considered barbaric or uncivilized in our Western eyes. 

  The story is incredibly gruesome, violent, and hard to watch most of the time. Never does it define any of the character's morally, but it instead treats them as real complex humans. 

  At times, Beats of no Nation feels very long-winded, which isn't surprising considering it took the screenwriter so long to perfect. Condensing the film would've given it an even bigger impact. 

  From a regular child, to a captive, to a killer, we are taken along with our main character on a introspective, emotional journey for those with the stomach to handle it. 7 out of 10 stars (Very Good)