WADJDA - TRIBECA REVIEW
Set in Saudi Arabia, WADJDA follows a carefree young girl named Wadjda who wants nothing more than to beat her friend Abdullah in a bicycle race but she does not have a bicycle and it looks bad for girls to ride bikes. She makes it her duty to save money for the perfect bike and enters a Koran recitation contest at her school to hopefully win the cash prize. The struggles at school and home put a damper on things as her mother may be pushed aside by her husband as he looks for a second wife.
Written and directed by female Saudi filmmaker Haifaa Al-Mansour, she takes us on a journey through the struggle of women in Saudi Arabia in everyday life. I haven’t seen many films on this matter so this was really upsetting to watch at times. It is accepted that women are the lesser sex and should be treated as such because of their religion. The women must not be in the sight of men unless covered from head to toe, they eat after the men, and are married off to men by their parents. They have no say. Watching this sort of behavior made me sick to my stomach and upset that this still actually happens.
With this being said, the script is extremely contrived but this did not keep me from enjoying the story. The ending was too easy and there were really no surprises but was I still crying? Yes. The fact that this sweet story is surrounded by the accepted mistreating of women will make anyone with a soul feel upset and then relieved for the glimpses of happiness that the women get to experience.
VERDICT: A SOLID CHOICE
Written and Directed by Haifaa Al-Mansour Starring Reem Abdullah, Waad Mohammed, Abdullrahman Al Gohani, Ahd, Sultan Al Assaf Country Germany, Saudia Arabia Content Disclaimer (Strong Adult Themes) For ticket and screening information: http://tribecafilm.com/festival/tickets
BOTTOM LINE: Packed with a whirlwind of emotions you will want to experience.