He Named Me Malala

Having saved the world so many times, how many superheroes have you seen on the cover of Time magazine? That's right, they don't exist. But real heroes do and they don't need superpowers or a fancy costume to stand in the face of injustice. As a defender of truth and equality in the times we live in, this is the incredible true story of Malala Yousafzai, a real hero whose only weapon is indelible courage. From Academy Award winning director Davis Guggenheim and produced by Imagenation Abu Dhabi, He Named Me Malala is part documentary, part animation, and part live action, but wholly narrated by Malala and her father Ziauddin Yousafzai. Although the use of animation is questionable, these segments are used as plot points leading up to the day when Malala was shot in the head by the Taliban. If not, Guggenheim would have had to reenact those moments using real actors but at the risk of discounting the authenticity of this documentary. Along with actual news footage and still images, much of the story is a reiteration of her courage, her ordeal, her survival, and her dedication as a right-to-education activist. While this might seem all too familiar to anyone following the news, the documentary doesn't feel scripted or even overladen with praise. And why shouldn't it be? This is about the assassination attempt on a 15-year-old girl whose only crime was speaking out on her basic right to an education. Inspired by her memoir I Am Malala, the film begins in Birmingham, United Kingdom, in 2013, where the Yousafzai family is based post recovery period. Although you don't see a scar, Malala bears a lopsided smile whenever she is asked a question. There is sadness in her eyes along with bashful insecurity but also wisdom and an inner strength much beyond her age. "Three years have passed", she recalls, not of the attempt on her life, but having left her beautiful home in the Swat Valley province of Pakistan. Surrounded by Afghani Mountains, we are shown images of this scenic region (which is always presented as a place of bloodshed and massacre by the media) before Malala begins her story. This is also where the narrative shifts from Malala to her father, beginning with his version of a 'love marriage' to Malala's mother. As a self-taught public speaker, Ziauddin's story is as incredible as his daughter Malala's. While it's clear where the latter gets her courage and insight from, it's the development of a symbiotic father-daughter relationship that makes this a documentary that must be seen. Riveting, and at times overwhelming, He Named Me Malala is a delight to watch, and so is Malala Yousafzai. Guggenheim could have stuffed this film with geopolitical propaganda and ended it with a bleeding cry for justice. When asked if they caught the person who shot his daughter, Ziauddin replies "Not a person, but an ideology". Likewise, Malala has her own quips, and along with her brothers and her father add refreshingly funny moments given the subject matter. At the same time and given her status as a public figure, at no point does Malala seem like a celebrity, nor does she see herself that way. What you do see is a shy teenager but one that is utterly brave and honest with the kind of raw dedication that outflanks millions, possibly billions, of people her age. The fact that Malala was featured on Time magazine twice, followed by her becoming the youngest ever recipient of a Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 proves my last statement. He Named Me Malala is highly inspirational and the type of film where you clap in the end, only to realize that you've clapped too early. Malala is only 18 now, but she has achieved far more than any of us ever will. That itself is worth a standing ovation and I wish her a long life of success in her fight for equality and education with many more accolades to come.

source: He Named Me Malala

I watched this movie with some trepidation, having wondered how much Malala was a product of Western media and manipulation. However, she completely won me over. I worked in education programs in Afghanistan and with Afghan refugees in Pakistan. I know firsthand the challenges that the communities in this region face, living with the horrors wrought by those who cope with their fears and insecurities by lashing out at anything they see as threatening, and living within the beautiful soul and heart of the Pashtun people and culture. Malala is a model of this spirit, as are her father, mother and brothers. I also thought the movie was beautifully made. For me the animated scenes made about parts of the story that couldn't be shown as reality were inspired. We saw what was only memory as a story, which is all it could be. Going back and forth from the present to the past made be slowly come to see how the present Malala came to be. She is smart, wise way beyond her years, funny, delightful. Spending this time with her was inspiring. Everyone who wants to understand the many faces of the human spirit, of Islam, of dedication, of human rights, should see this movie.

this is the Excellent documentary i ever seen in Pakistan every body talk about Malala is fake but this documentary show us how she survive i am also from Pakistan i respect women The name Malala is a variant of Malalai, which means "sad, grieved" in Pashto. This was the name of a Pashtun woman who encouraged the Afghan forces during the 1880 Battle of Maiwand against the British. Another bearer of this name is Malalai Joya (born 1978), an activist, writer, and a former politician from Afghanistan this is the latest documentary from director David Guggenheim, best known for previous efforts such as Waiting for Superman, and It Might Get Loud. Here he tackles a difficult task, namely how to make an enticing documentary about a remarkable person, without coming across as simply wanting to 'glorify' that person. The answer, as it turns out, is quite simple: show us that person (in this case Malala) in their natural environment, and let us observe the REAL person. And then Guggenheim has another ace up his sleeve: he lets us catch glimpses (and more) of how the Taliban slowly but surely changes the Swat Valley in Pakistan, where Malala and her family lived. I must say, I was quite shocked at what I saw: the Taliban's brutality and determination knows no boundaries. As Malala (or was it her dad) observes at one point: "For the Taliban, it is not about faith, it is about power". Speaking of Malala's dad, it turns out he is quite remarkable well. I wondered why the movie wasn't simply called "I Am Malala" (her autobiography, from which the movie of course borrows), but now that I've seen it, it makes perfect sense, as this is a documentary not just about Malala but also very much about her dad. There is various remarkable archive footage in the documentary about the Taliban, her dad, and of course Malala herself. I must admit that I was worried how the makers of this documentary were going to fill an hour and a half in a way that would keep my attention. I shouldn't have worried. This is a moving documentary that, frankly, left me even more in awe of Malala than I already was. And to think this young lady is still only 18 years old as we speak! I am humbled and also a little inspired after seeing this.

Malala Yousafzai is a young activist for womens rights. At 15yrs old she was shot in the head by Taliban but regardless continued to spread her message worldwide as an ambassador for equality. I expected a powerful documentary telling her entire story but what I got felt very watered down. Focusing as much on her personal life and that of her father as the real matters this wasn't as gritty nor as emotional as I'd expected. For this I blame the director, I don't know what vision he had but this is less a thought provoking documentary and more a Behind The Music (1997) kind of thing. Her message is deep, it's meaningful and one that should be spread but this documentary is not the way of doing it. To me these 90 minutes were counter productive in many ways. She fights for equality but defends the religion that has prevented it and resulted in all the atrocities that have befallen her sex and resulted in her catching a bullet to the face. I do love a good documentary, this simply isn't one. The Good: Core message is great The Bad: Too light hearted Excessive focus on her father Religion is the cause of all of this so why defend it? Things I Learnt From This Documentary: If your doctrines say that you should be subserviant and you deserve all the ills that befall you from those that claim to love you, then it makes perfect sense to try and make people ignore it as opposed to leaving the religion.....

I gave this movie a go because it was uploaded only a few days ago on Putlocker and of course, I have heard a lot about Malala especially promoting for girls to have education in poorer countries. I really felt relieved that she is alive today for speaking up because rarely, people normally don't survive with a gunshot wound to their face. Fortunately, young Malala was lucky to have survived. The Taliban are crazy nutjobs just like Bako Haram, ISIS and other dangerous groups who are extremely heartless. As Malala's father has said, they basically use Islam for an excuse to bring power into destroying people's lives! Such a cruel world we are living in like Jesus! Anyways onto Malala again, I loved seeing her two brothers, they were so funny since of course, they are younger then Malala and they think they are the big guys of the family. They are like every child and teens of the world, they like to tease their siblings a lot. Thankfully my brother and I are outgrown the teasing since we are too old for that now haha! Im sure deep inside, they are very proud of their sister for winning awards and speaking out for girls like herself. She is like three years younger then me and god, i wouldn't be brave as she is. She has such a personality that you are immediately drawn to, she is a very kind, caring, intelligent, ambitious and courageous person that you could ever met in this world! I say in years time, she will be always known as the girl who escaped from war and that would mean for a lot of people who had the same experience as her!

Pakistan is a developing country and swat from where Malala actually belongs is a liberal district since long. It is right it got pass from a situation for some years but after and before the specific period it is enjoying its freedom. I myself has never write a review but I feel here to put one just to show the world that we are not the one who are being presented. Many children have been killed in the so called war but no one even knows about their names, I feel ashamed when Malal says I am from the area where girls are not allowed to go to school, I want to ask a question from Malala to name even a single small village in the entire swat where there is no separate school for girls .Malala won't tell us that there are many colleges specially for girls and a co-education university in Swat. We have women from our district in Media, education, showbiz, government and in ever public and private sector as well where they are enjoying their lives without fear. Our people love to educate their daughters. In short we are free and we are enjoying our freedom , Malala has no future in our country now she has already lost the respect of our people no matter she got a Nobel prize, the real prize has been lost forever and for always.

Malala, a girl who had lived in northern Pakistan, was shot in her head by Taliban for daring to suggest that girls should go to school. This may be true. But the fact is that in all over Pakistan, we still have schools, girls do go to school. People's minds are clear that education they must give to their children, to give them a hope of better future. So in the depicted story, it is just a corner plot, a way to defame Pakistan. Moreover it was said that Mullah Fazlullah was a 'Radio mullah'. I do have strong doubts about this statement. Taliban were a small group of militants. How could have they acquired the equipment to set up an FM station of their own and summon on it everyday. It takes a lot of money, access to international market and some genius mind to install it. Surely a group this conservative mind could not do this. So its easier said than done. Finally the opening quote in this film is misquoted. It was originally said by 'Tipu Sultan', a Muslim sub-continent king who said: 'It's better to live like a lion for one day, than to live like a coward for 100 years'. So a correction is required in this regard. Overall it is a misguide of quotes, facts and figures, a hype, a propaganda. Malali's family must have been paid a huge sum of money to be a part of this plot in this film. It must have been scripted by western minds to defame my country. So in real life she has played a role of traitor to her country. However, I support the cause that 'pen and book are the strong weapons'. But don't forget that today's strong weapon is MEDIA. And through this film it has tried to change the perspective of a common western person that Pakistan is full of militants of this kind, and girls are shot like Malala. But its surely not true.

Most people know her name and she has become a recognized figure throughout the world since winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014. But very few know anything about 17 year-old Malala's new life in the UK since she was flown over for emergency medical treatment after her school bus was ambushed and she was shot in the face by the Taliban in the Swat Valley in Pakistan in 2012. The director Davis Guggenheim followed Malala and her family for a year as she travelled the world to speak about her conviction and passion to promote the rights of girls globally to have an education. This took the film maker to Nigeria and Jordan where she spoke to Syrian refugees and to the UN where Malala addressed the Congress. But it is the insight Guggenheim has into the every day home life of the Yousafzai family in Birmingham that is such a charming and magical revelation. He was enchanted by the family and taken into their confidence and trust as is apparent from scenes around the kitchen table and particularly with the deep and very intense relationship between Malala and her father Ziauddin. He named his daughter after the Pashtun heroine Malalai of Maiwand who was assassinated for speaking out. Malala's dignified but shy mother and her cheeky younger brothers are asked about their views on what has happened to their life and how they feel about it. The family has a lot of fun and laughter and Malala is very much a young girl, giggling as she looks at magazine pictures of young cricketers and insisting it is only the cricket she is interested in. Traumatic images of Malala's treatment at the Birmingham hospital where she spent many months, when it was not known if she would survive, let alone be able to speak again, firmly remind us of how the odds were stacked against her and how very miraculous her recovery is as well as the dedication of the team who attended her rehabilitation. Images of the idyllic region of the Swat Valley are re-created by animator Jason Carpenter of Carpenter Bros Animation, an inspired choice, as their delicate creation evokes the beauty and simplicity of the life that the family have had to abandon. Previously unseen news footage of areas where the Talban burned down schools and collected television sets and videos which were burned on a pyre like so many witches, are a brutal reminder of the insanity that has caused such misery to so many. Malala's father condemns their actions and their brand of Islam as evil and clips of him speaking out against them to his compatriots are shown which are scorching in their audacity and bravery. What stands out like a tower of strength is the unbending determination and dedication of Malala to devote her life to the education of all girls everywhere. Her voice is like a spire of light, strong and daunting and she seems to have no fear of speaking to prime ministers and Presidents alike. When Guggenheim asked her if, when she met President Obama she had challenged him about drones killing villagers and women and children she replied with indignation "Of course!". When Malala's name was announced as the recipient of the Nobel Peace prize in 2014 we see her back at home flinging herself into her father's arms and they hug and weep silently, not just with relief and joy but with a love and mutual understanding that knows no bounds. This wonderful insightful film should be shown in all schools all over the world and shines like a beacon of hope to all of us. She is right: one person can change the world.

After seeing this I want to change my name to Malala. Malala is a noteworthy individual who deserves to be documented. Like she says in the movie, her story is every girls story, and it deserves to me told. This doc tells a story of a 17 year old girl and how she interacts with her family, how she goes to school, her attraction to boys, and her not so average status as a world wide celebrity just for speaking out for a woman's right to education. It's a problem a huge chunk of the world faces and some of us can't fully wrap our head around. The concept that you could get shot in the face for speaking your mind about the basic needs of all humans. He Name Me Malala follows this brave young girl around the globe as she campaigns for children like herself to be educated. My favorite part of the movie, He Named Me Malala is the guy who named her Malala. They portrayed a truly great man (behind the woman), who saw his child (not a boy or a girl) and encouraged her to speak her mind, and they displayed it like it was not a big deal, just a father doing the best thing for his children. To me it was what all of us have in common with Malala that makes this documentary special, and in return makes everything that she has done inspirational. Go see it and get inspired.