Review of Beasts of No Nation (2015) by Orlando C — 17 Oct 2015

[8 outta 10] ~ 'Beasts Of No Nation' just hammers you with raw and brutal imagery/story. The horrors of war-stricken third world life are front and center, definitely not for the faint of heart. It has joined 'The Road' and '12 Years A Slave' on my most emotionally exhausting movies list.

Very well written and directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga (who also made True Detective); excellent performance by Idris Elba, though his character wasn't as savage as I thought he'd be; superb work from the main child actor, Abraham Attah, you felt for/with him completely (though I wish the narrative for his motivations for becoming a child soldier was a little more impactive); his comrade-in-arms "Strika" (Emmanuel Nii Adom Quaye) was just as good and his will hit you hard; "Tripod" (Annointed Wesseh) stood out despite being a minor character; it was tough to avoid getting invested in the movie because the writing, directing, acting, and atmosphere sucks you right in.

Netflix done good... but we all knew that... so worth the $10/mth subscription.