Drama revolving around nine-year-old Shula who is accused of witchcraft in Zambia, where the marginalisation of ‘witches’ continues in 2017.
Following...
Drama revolving around nine-year-old Shula who is accused of witchcraft in Zambia, where the marginalisation of ‘witches’ continues in 2017.
Following a banal incident in her local village in Africa, Shula is accused of witchcraft. After a short trial she is found guilty, taken into state custody and exiled to a witch camp in the middle of a desert. At the camp she takes part in an initiation ceremony where she is shown the rules surrounding her new life as a witch. Like the other residents, Shula is tied to a ribbon which is attached to a coil that perches in a large tree. She is told that should she ever cut the ribbon, she'll be cursed and transformed into a goat.
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96 %85 reviewsRotten Tomatoes® rating
73 %695 reviewsAudience score rating
"It's rare and exhilarating that a new filmmaker arrives on the scene so sure of herself and so willing to take bold, counter-intuitive chances."
Variety"Aesthetically brave, narratively chaotic, this casts a singular spell."
Total Film"The film is perhaps overly repetitive in emphasising Shula's inability to escape exploitation, but the story is put across with formal confidence and real originality."
The New York Times"Nyoni has delivered a pulsingly odd and strikingly original debut: a tale of dogma, prejudice and corruption in the country of her birth."
The Guardian"In this feature debut from Zambian-born film-maker Rungano Nyoni, ancient superstitions and crass commercialism go into partnership to grotesque effect."
Sydney Morning Herald"The film crafts a framework of superstition and ritual, onto which is hung a vividly realised, if somewhat enigmatic portrait of a child's life."
Screen Daily"A fable-like story about a young African girl banished from her village for alleged witchcraft, it blends deadpan humor with light surrealism, vivid visuals and left-field musical choices."
Hollywood ReporterI Am Not a Witch | Details
- Runtime
- 88
- Genre
- Drama
- Country of origin
- UK, France
