How long has it been since I’ve done a post on something to watch? It’s been like FOREVER! Not too long ago, I saw a billboard (I think) for Beasts of No Nation and I knew I had to see it.
Based on the book of the same name by Uzodinma Iweala The movie tells the story of a young boy, Agu living in an unnamed West African country that is being torn by a civil war. Although there is war going on all around him, his family lives a rather peaceful and happy life – until the war reaches their doorstep quite literally. From there everything in Agu’s life changes. His mother and young sister are forced to flee the country for their own safety and he is left with his father and older brother. In the blink of an eye, he loses his father and brother in the most horrible way and aimlessly flees to save his own life. Without a home and a family he is forced to fend for himself. He is alone and afraid – that is until he finds what appears to be a new family who is there for him. He seems to have found a new father – or has he?
The horrors that he has to witness at such a young age forces the boy to grow up quickly. While some might say that it forced him to become a man at a very young age, I would argue that it forced him to lose his childhood – leaving him seemingly empty. Somehow along the way, he finds pieces of himself and in the end tries his best to become whole again. It is poignant and chilling – sad and inspiring. Because I do not like to include spoilers I suggest everyone watch this movie and witness the courage of a child who had no way out and somehow survived clinging only to the broken pieces of himself. In the end we can only hope that Agu is able to put the pieces together and once again live a life that is full and complete. The movie is available on Netflix. See a short clip below. Oh, and Idris Elba is in it *drops mic*.