Seeing Kenya a Different Way

Kenya Map

Destination: Kenya

Movie: The First Grader, A National Geographic Film (2011) PG-13

I went to see [amazon_link id=”B00542PTUU” target=”_blank” ]The First Grader[/amazon_link] expecting to see a heart-warming feel good story about literacy. National Geographic is one of the producers, so I expected that it would be beautifully photographed and give me a scenic tour of Africa.

Justin Chadwick, whom you may remember as the director of [amazon_link id=”B0012QE4Q2″ target=”_blank” ]The Other Boleyn Girl,[/amazon_link] directed the film. He worked with the BBC and the British Film Council. The fact the film was funded by a British entity is ironic, since the plot criticizes Britain’s handling of the 1950’s crisis in Kenya after the attacks of the Mau Mau, who terrorized white settlers as they battled for Kenyan independence.

The 84-year-old central character in this true story, Kimani Ng’ang’a Maruge (1920-2009), was a Mau Mau veteran and served time in a prison camp. Soldiers shot his wife for not telling who he was. They tortured him because he would not recant his pledge to the Mau Mau. Maruge never learned to read, so in the new century when he gets a letter from the now independent government, he takes the Kenyan government up on their offer of free education for everyone, and shows up at the local elementary school.

We learn the back story in flashbacks to his youth and see one scene of a Mau Mau attack and many scenes of the brutality of the British.  This was an eye opener for me.  Like many Americans, I tend to remain ignorant about the history of African nations, and all I remember about the Mau Mau times was feeling sorry for white farmers who had been in Africa for generations, as they were savaged by what we saw as a gang of thugs.

Now I see it differently. Yes, the Mau Mau did many very bad things, but the colonial rulers’ reaction, if it is anything like the cringe-inducing scenes in the movie, fought violence with violence in an equally inhumane way.

Kenya school children
Kenya school children

The scenes in the school are delightful and at first I was thinking how my 6-year-old grand-daughter could benefit from seeing children in another country as they learned the alphabet. But DO NOT take young children to this movie.  The stark reality of the Mau Mau uprisings, and the somewhat related nastiness of townspeople toward the school teacher who decides to help the old man learn, makes a tough lesson for adults.  It is a lesson too complex for small children, particularly when you mix in a bit of government corruption and the prevailing poverty.

Oh dear, I hope I have not made this all sound too glum.  It is not glum. It is simply a well-rounded telling of the story of one man and reflection of many others. The view of Africa–both the countryside and Kenya’s capitol, Nairobi, may not be packed with travelogue beauty, but it shows real lives in a real and oddly alluring land.

sunset Masai Mara

Oliver Litundo, who plays Maruge, has played only bit parts before (after a career as a news reader), which makes his performance that much more amazing. Quoting from the National Geographic site: The children in the film–who are in many ways the stars–had never seen a film or television set before, let alone be involved in a filming process.

Kenyan princesses
Kenyan children

Instead they are locals filmed in their own real school. And those school children are so beautiful that you would swear they are pampered little actors and actresses. And by the way, this is a good, heart-warming story about literacy. (That is my opinion, and I’m sticking with it, despite critics all over the map.)

You can make a difference by clicking over to You Tube to see The First Grader trailer . See how you will be contributing to children’s education. The film has pretty much run its course in the Western U.S., but will still be playing in East Coast states for a few weeks. The release date for London is June 24. The National Geographic movie site has a schedule for the U.S. Or put it on your Netflix or Amazon wait list.

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About Vera Marie Badertscher

A freelance writer who loves to travel. When she is not traveling she is reading about travel. When she is not reading or traveling, she is sharing with the readers of A Traveler's Library, or recreating her family's past at Ancestors In Aprons . She has written for Reel Life With Jane, Life is a Trip and other websites. Also co-author of a biography, Quincy Tahoma, The Life and Legacy of a Navajo Artist. Contact Vera Marie by e-mail.

7 thoughts on “Seeing Kenya a Different Way

  1. I’d like to see the film in its entirety. I have been to Tanzania and Kenya. Currently status. Yes, getting a education is tough in most of these areas as the cost of a free education is mostly unaffordable, with fees and uniforms to be expensive. The schools tend to be underfunded and the teacher training does not include reading comprehension strategies. Mostly word recognition and rote learning is the style of education. Most good schools are privately funded. I don’t know how to get the heartbeat going for people who can, to support literacy efforts in East Africa. Now there are similar outreaches for food scarcity, water access and purification, medical care and self sustainability. So, literacy is on low on the “what’s important and necessary list” for most.
    If you see the film, its trailor or visit Africa, then you are more informed than the average. But let me say this, I have sent 64 boxes of books to four schools since 2009, to promote literacy, to help the teachers teach and the students to read regularly. Any help in the area of literacy, packing up and sending a box of books, USPS Flat rate international box, that fits up to 20 pounds of books, will help the school of your choice. There are many headmasters looking for early childhood and chapter books to circulate, (instead of old newspapers). So, don’t just be moved in your heart, sponsor a box of books. Just a little research, you will find a eagerly waiting school of children to bless.

  2. Sadly, I think Kenya will go through much more hardship before coming good. The safari parks are superb but the country have struggled with poor governments, uprisings and violence. Sadly, I watch most African countries have leaders that serve only their tribe and not their country leaving a festering them-and-us feeling. The movie sounds great and I hope that I can locate it in Australia.

  3. Kenya is gorgeous, and troubled still, I think. thanks for telling about this film. several Celtic musician friends of mine regularly do work to support an orphanage in Kenya which has programs to help the children grow up to become responsible, caring citizens.

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