Review of B for Boy (2013) by Richard D — 31 Jul 2016
An upper middle class Nigerian woman is pregnant with her second child. Her first child is a girl, and her husband's family is stressing how important it is for this child to be a boy. She's pushing 40, so the chances of her having a third child is pretty remote.
Her husband's mother is pushing him to take on a second younger wife. Circumstances conspire to leave her childless and unable to reveal to her husband what has happened. She follows an increasingly tortuous path towards acquiring a male baby at whatever cost.
The circumstances set up in this film seem pretty far-fetched, but that's made up for by the way it shows the sort of bad decisions that get made when pressure is applied on people. The husband seems like a good man, and he stands up for his wife when his family attacks her, but not even he seems willing to completely stand up to the insane pressure to deliver an heir to carry on his family name.
The film's about a half hour too long, but it's an engrossing and revealing portrait of what oppressive cultural traditions can do to individuals.
This review of B for Boy (2013) was written by Richard D on 31 Jul 2016.
B for Boy has generally received very positive reviews.
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