I Am Not a Witch (2017)

Surprisingly incoherent and boring

Absolutely Brilliant!

Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

Just a poem of sadness and truth. Exquisitely acted, shot and edited. Sound also extraordinary. Needs to be seen.

At the time of this review, this film attained the elusive 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, so naturally expectations were exceedingly high. Did Nyoni's feature debut fulfil my thirst for perfection? Not quite. An incident occurs in a remote Zambian village which leaves the villagers to believe that a young girl is a witch, consequently resulting in her being sent to a witches' camp. Contemporary, captivating and surprisingly comical, it's an indie flick that certainly meshes several dichotomies within a tonally inconsistent narrative. Illustrating the modernisation of Zambia but retaining the superstitious and traditional views of an ancient world. The segregation of (typically) older women into camps positioned outside of society is certainly a bleak perspective into the apparent sexism that arises within various cultures. Male characters certainly have more power and authority over females who are seemingly attached to strands of ribbon as if resembling prisoners. It's an intriguing and illusory picture that convincingly enables Nyoni to showcase both her artistry and viewpoint. Enigmatic long takes, a commanding central performance from Mulubwa and gorgeous cinematography by Gallego, there's various aspects to adore in what is a technically flawless film. The utilisation of Vivaldi's composed classical music juxtaposes the chaotic traditions that are being upheld within this community, plus...I love me some Vivaldi. It's unfortunate that I found this film slightly tedious to watch, and that's mainly down to the narrative. The clashing of dark deadpan humour and surreal dramatic perspectives did not blend well for me. It was a disorientating experience fuelled by ambiguity and vivid imagery that just wasn't fully comprehensible. It does occasionally lean towards style over substance. Although, this is still impressive work from Nyoni considering it's her feature debut. A promising career is ahead of her, yet it just wasn't able to cast a spell on me completely.

I sat down to watch it, and wasn't expecting much from the movie. Little did I know that I was in for some big laughs. The story is beautifully written, and the acting was superb, considering many of the cast were debuting. The cast, specifically the young Maggie Mulubwa and Henry B.J. Phiri played their roles exceptionally well. I highly recommend this movie. If you have a witty sense of humor, you'll love this movie. Kuddos to Rungano Nyoni.

I'm disappointed there aren't more reviews on this superb little film, considering it's the work of a first time director who shows impressive talent and promise. The good: excellent camera work which uses the parched landscape of rural Zambia to great effect, reinforcing the interior lives of the characters and moving the story forwards. The little girl is superb in the role, one of the greatest performances I've seen from a child actor in a long time, she conveys everything without speaking, simply from her expression or body language. Incredible. Plenty to read into the film, the three friends I went with had plenty to say about it afterwards and we all agreed the themes it explored apply to every human culture, not just an African one. the same behaviours and ways people delude themselves or accept ridiculous beliefs because they want to belong, the way human societies find someone to scapegoat and project on to that person all of the groups ills, all this is depressingly familiar. My only criticism is this is again a film of Afro pessimism, there's precious few films from the continent making it on to cinema screens, the only ones I can think of recently are Felicite, Johnny Mad Dog. Both somewhat gloomy subject matter. it would be nice to see some films that offered a different perspective. Having lived and worked in Africa I know there's a lot more to the continent than child witches, child soldiers, FGM, HIV epidemics, diseases, starvation corrupt leaders and so on... People get on in much the way they do anywhere, making the best of what little they have...