Beasts of No Nation (2015)

• Year: 2015
• Released: 16 Oct 2015
• Country: United States
• Adwords: Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award31 wins & 57 nominations total
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1365050/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/beasts_of_no_nation
• Metacritics: https://www.metacritic.com/movie/beasts-of-no-nation
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: English, Akan
• MPA Rating: TV-MA
• Genre: Drama, War
• Runtime: 137 min
• Writer: Cary Joji Fukunaga, Uzodinma Iweala
• Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga
• Cast: Abraham Attah, Emmanuel Affadzi, Ricky Adelayitor
• Keywords: based on novel or book, africa, children in wartime, child soldier,

	7.7/10
	79/100
	91% – Critics
	92% – Audience

Beasts of No Nation Storyline

Follows the journey of a young boy, Agu, who is forced to join a group of soldiers in a fictional West African country. While Agu fears his commander and many of the men around him, his fledgling childhood has been brutally shattered by the war raging through his country, and he is at first torn between conflicting revulsion and fascination Depicts the mechanics of war and does not shy away from explicit, visceral detail, and paints a complex, difficult picture of Agu as a child soldier.

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Beasts of No Nation Movie Reviews

Not like a baby, like an old man

Greetings again from the darkness. Cary Joji Fukunaga has quickly established himself as an expert storyteller with his previous writing and directing of SIN NOMBRE (2009), JANE EYRE (2011) and the fascinating and conversation-sparking first season of “True Detective” (he did not direct the much-maligned Season Two). He goes even deeper and darker this time by adapting Uzodinma Iweala’s novel about a child soldier.

When first we meet Agu, he is but an enterprising and fun-loving kid who thrives on mischief such as trying to sell “Imagination TV” – the empty shell of a console TV, complete with Agu and his buddies acting out scenes for those who peer through the picture tube opening. Agu describes himself as “a good boy from a good family”, and we believe him.

Somewhere in Africa is all we know about the location, and soon enough Agu’s village is under siege and he is separated from his mother, and forced to stay behind with the men – including his father and big brother. More terror forces Agu alone into the forest until he is brought into a mostly young group of rebel forces led by the Commandant (Idris Elba). It’s around this time that Agu begins “talking” to God through voice over narration that allows viewers to understand what’s going on inside Agu’s head – often quite contrary to what is happening on the outside as he transforms from mischievous kid to dead-eyed child soldier. When Agu stops speaking to God, we understand that he believes he no longer deserves to be heard, but his words to the universe (directed to his mother) let us know, this boy has not yet lost his soul.

Though we never understand the war, or even who is fighting whom, this uncertainty is designed to help us better relate to Agu. He may be a tough-minded soldier, but we also never forget that he is mostly a little boy hoping to re-connect with his mother. Idris Elba plays the Commandant as part father-figure, part war lord, and part cult leader. He is a menacing presence one moment and a soothing voice of reason the next. When we (and Agu) learn the full story of his multiple sides, we are both sickened and disheartened. It’s the performances of both Elba and newcomer Abraham Attah (as Agu) that make this such a devastating and fascinating movie to watch, and it’s the filmmaking of Fukunaga that keeps our eyes glued to the screen when we would just as soon turn away.

“If this war is ever ending, I cannot be going back to doing child things”.

Definitely not a film for the timid or sensitive. College campuses airing the film will require safe zones. The film would have had more poignancy I believe, if it were actually based on a true story, though I have no doubt the atrocities shown in the film are representative of warring factions in opposition to each other in various places on the planet. The inhumanity and barbarism that one group of people can inflict on another convinces me that there is no possibility for the cherished ‘peace on earth’ that many of us dream and pray for.

For an independent film this picture features exceptional cinematography and outstanding performances. It’s probably a toss up as to who delivered the stronger portrayal, Idris Elba as the Commandant or Abraham Atta as the child soldier Agu. Principally told through the thoughtful narrative of Agu, the viewer agonizes along with him as his band of mercenaries terrorizes opposition forces and grow disillusioned over a never ending mission. The hopelessness of their cause is best expressed through the dying words of Two I-C – “This was all for nothing”.

There is value in watching films like this so one does not grow complacent in a world that can often be brutal and discouraging. However the film offers only the slightest of consolation for it’s principal protagonist Agu, who detachedly relates his story as a child exposed to unimaginable horrors. The challenge he issues to the viewer is to hear his story without imagining him a beast or a devil, as the circumstances of his life have unintentionally trapped him in that corner.

About as unpleasant as any film can be.

I have seen several documentaries about the insane fighting throughout Africa, such as in the Congo. Rebel forces often consist of little more than private armies of mere children brainwashed into committing the worst atrocities. And, they long ago lost track of their goals of freedom or power–and are simply bend on destruction and death. The Netflix film “Beasts of No Nation” is a dramatization of such an army but the exact countries involved are never mentioned…and it could be one of several across the continent.

The film centers on a boy who appears to be about 8-10 years old, Agu. When the film begins, he’s living in a zone controlled by the UN, though true to form the UN troops soon leave and the village is destroyed by government forces. Agu runs into the bush and eventually comes into contact with the rebel group, the NDF. This group is run by the Commandant (Idris Elba)–an awful combination of father, prophet, guru, rapist and the Devil. The process by which Agu is brainwashed and turned into a killing machine makes up the most of this film.

So is this any good? Yes and no. The film is very well made and compelling. But, it is also hellish and awful–so awful I cannot imagine anyone WANTING to see it. Viewing the film is more an endurance contest than anything else. In other words, can the viewer even watch it to the end since it’s thoroughly unpleasant…so unpleasant that it makes “Hotel Rwanda” seem like a Disney film by comparison!! Pedophilia, rape, brutal murders and death…this is “Beasts of No Nation” in a nutshell. Documentaries on the same subject are easier to watch and just as informative.