‘Nawi’ Review: Four Kenyan Filmmakers Collaborate on an Earnest Social Message Movie About Child Marriage

variety.com:

Murtada Elfadl Watching “Nawi,” two things become quickly evident. First, a wonderful lead performance carries the film. Michelle Lemuya Ikeny plays the eponymous character, a 13-year-old who yearns to go to high school but instead must face the patriarchal traditions of her community.

She’s set to be married off for a substantial dowry in livestock. Second, the creative team of Toby Schmutzler, Kevin Schmutzler, Vallentine Chelluget and Apuu Mourine is so determined to make a salient point about child marriage that they deprive the film of its cinematic and entertainment value.

In shifting focus to their political statement, the four co-directors fail to give their lead actor the showcase her strong performance demands.

Selected to represent Kenya at the Oscars, “Nawi” takes place in the rural region of Turkana in the northern part of the East African nation.