He Named Me Malala

Malalai of Maiwand was a legendary heroine from Afghanistan who inspired the country's army to fight when they had given up. She led them to battle to win, but she was shot in the process. So to most people, it is a sad name. But to the young woman of Swat Valley in Pakistan, it was a name that encouraged hope. The documentary directed by Davis Guggenheim (An Inconvenient Truth) incorporates interviews with Malala Yousafzai and most notably her father with whom she has a powerful bond and the history of that area of the world that is strife with danger.

When the Taliban came to their remote village, it was peaceful and the villagers were welcoming to them. But as time progressed, their politics became more extreme and hostile to western influences. They banned TV's, CD's, movies and educating girls. Malala's father Ziauddin ran a chain of schools in the region had a stammer when he was younger, but overcame it and became a teacher and later speaker to their community on the importance of education of their children. Malala also became an activist and was well spoken at the age of 13. In 2012, the school bus she was on was fired upon by the Taliban and she was shot in the head after she had spoke out about the importance of education of young women. Everyone thought she would die, but she endured. The family had to move eventually to England with the threat on her life and on her family.

When Malala was 11/12 she wrote a blog under a pseudonym for the BBC detailing her life under the Taliban occupation. No one else wanted to do it because it was too dangerous. She gained prominence when a New York Times documentary was made about her life. She began giving interviews in print and on TV. She was nominated for the International Children's Peace Prize by Desmond Tutu. The assassination attempt sparked a national and international outcry and support for her. Most of the interviews with Malala are when she was 16 trying to fit in to English schools, and for once being a teenager. But her mission in life keeps her from totally indulging in whimsy of just being her age. She wrote a book with British journalist Christina Lamb that was published in 2013 called I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and was Shot by the Taliban. The Pakistan schools banned the book as having a negative influence. Some of her countrymen think of her as a agent of the West against Islam. On her 16th birthday in 2013 she addressed the UN which dubbed the event Malala Day. It was her first speaking event since the attack on her. In 2014 Malala was announced as the co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize becoming the youngest Nobel laureate.

The movie is very inspirational and probably should be required viewing for all young people. There was a few problems as far as the events jumped forward and backwards giving confusion to the time line. But it was well done, manipulating the heartstrings. Her mother remains mostly in the background, her brothers seem to be typical teasing siblings. Her father is most vocal and you can see where she gets her confidence and fire to speak her mind. It's hard to imagine a world where girls are denied education. Thanks to Malala we can see who we need to fight.
(Review by reesa)