Friday, January 6, 2023

The Woman King (2022)

 Pros: Viola Davis heads a fabulous cast in a film that depicts African culture toward the end of the slave trade. Part of the Dahomey are the women warriors led by Davis's Nanisca who holds her own personal vendetta against the Oyo tribe not to mention the slavers who take the prisoners and sell them into slavery which is shown. The costumes and set make the film all the more real and worth watching.

Cons: Honestly, it is hard to find a true bad thing about this film though it is always hard to have a film which is filled with violence (though it is done tastefully) and implied rape, as those have been done time and time again.

Recommend: Yes

Grade: B+

Side Notes:

-The supporting cast is largely unknown though they deliver brilliant and realistic performances.

-John Boyega is great as the king who does an abrupt about face with Nanisca, first forbidding her from fighting both the Oyo and slavers but she disobeys him and after she manages an unlikely defeat, her reward remains intact.

-It takes Nanisca the entire film to forgive her daughter and herself for her brutal rape.

-It is unclear how many wives John Boyega actually has, though one is far more vocal than the rest. 

-There is a love story as one of the subplots and it ends differently with Nawi (Thuso Mbedu) remaining a warrior.

-Nanisca ultimately fulfills the title by being appointed the woman king. 

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