He Named Me Malala

Name: He Named Me Malala
Genre: Documentary
Released: October 2, 2015
Duration: 88 min
Rating: 61
Cast: Malala Yousafzai, Ziauddin Yousafzai

2015

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 26 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 9 Ratings

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6.2

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6.2	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 9 Ratings

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He Named Me Malala

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Movie Details & Credits

Fox Searchlight Pictures | Release Date: October 2, 2015 | PG-13

Starring: Malala Yousafzai, Ziauddin Yousafzai

Summary: Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai was targeted by the Taliban and severely wounded by a gunshot when returning home on her school bus in Pakistan’s Swat Valley. The then 15-year-old (she turned 18 this July) was singled out, along with her father, for advocating for girls’ education, and the attack on her sparked an outcry fromNobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai was targeted by the Taliban and severely wounded by a gunshot when returning home on her school bus in Pakistan’s Swat Valley. The then 15-year-old (she turned 18 this July) was singled out, along with her father, for advocating for girls’ education, and the attack on her sparked an outcry from supporters around the world. She miraculously survived and is now a leading campaigner for girls’ education globally as co-founder of the Malala Fund.… Expand

Director: Davis Guggenheim

Genre(s): Documentary

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 88 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Chris Nashawaty

Oct 2, 2015

Davis Guggenheim’s latest documentary is a forceful and exquisitely made piece of advocacy journalism. Read full review

Empire Dan Jolin

Nov 2, 2015

A fittingly poignant treatment of an inspiring subject. Read full review

Ty Burr

Oct 9, 2015

We may someday look back on He Named Me Malala as a film that told us much about a future world leader — or one that told us surprisingly little. Read full review

Justin Chang

Sep 16, 2015

Where the film falters is in its willingness to settle for canned uplift, reducing the substance of Malala’s global activism to multicultural montages, goosed by Thomas Newman’s emotional cattle prod of a score. Read full review

Mike Scott

Oct 8, 2015

Guggenheim's film makes it clear that she is funny. She is humble. And, beneath her extraordinary sense of purpose, she is an ordinary kid. Read full review

Neil Genzlinger

Oct 1, 2015

It only occasionally delivers the kind of unguarded moment that makes you feel as if you’re getting beneath the media image, and it is not at all interested in discussing broader issues raised by Ms. Yousafzai’s fame. Read full review

Kenji Fujishima

Sep 27, 2015

The effect of the film's animated sequences is to distance the viewer from real-life horrors--another misguided attempt at turning recent history into instant myth. Read full review

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User Reviews

alejandro970

Mar 11, 2018

Witty documentary of a brave, determinated, unsinkable girl and her quest for equality in education. The footage is seasoned with beautiful animated sequences.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

wcrosher

Oct 7, 2015

Its hard not to like this movie, with Malala being such an incredible story and one that absolutely needed to be shown on the big screen, but with the weird transitions and unnecessary animation that seemed to make very real, adult issues into childish moments, the incredible true storyIts hard not to like this movie, with Malala being such an incredible story and one that absolutely needed to be shown on the big screen, but with the weird transitions and unnecessary animation that seemed to make very real, adult issues into childish moments, the incredible true story could have quite easily been handled better.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Brent_Marchant

Oct 26, 2015

An informative, though not always engaging profile of a courageous young woman who defied authority -- and the odds -- to make her voice heard. While the film definitely has its heart in the in the right place and is undoubtedly sincere in its intent, its frequent shifts in focus and looselyAn informative, though not always engaging profile of a courageous young woman who defied authority -- and the odds -- to make her voice heard. While the film definitely has its heart in the in the right place and is undoubtedly sincere in its intent, its frequent shifts in focus and loosely structured narrative don't lead to particularly cogent storytelling, despite its overall inspiring message.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

FilmPhonic

Nov 22, 2015

Director Davis Guggenheim’s chronicle of the life, so far, of Nobel Prize-winning Pakistani teenage activist Malala Yousafzai, from being shot by the Taliban for suggesting girls should be educated to moving to Britain and becoming a global ambassador for children’s education and genderDirector Davis Guggenheim’s chronicle of the life, so far, of Nobel Prize-winning Pakistani teenage activist Malala Yousafzai, from being shot by the Taliban for suggesting girls should be educated to moving to Britain and becoming a global ambassador for children’s education and gender equality.

If you’ve watched television over the last 3 years surely you’ve heard of Malala Yousafzai and her extraordinary story, ‘He Named Me Malala’ is an account of the teenager’s brief but eventful life so far, crafted for full dramatic effect.

But the heart of this movie is the confluence between director Davis Guggenheim’s convictions about the power of education, as seen in his recent work, and those of Malala and her father. The result is a central ethos for which our heroine risked her life, which essentially makes ‘He Named Me Malala’ a piece of advocacy filmmaking which straddles the line of positive propaganda.

The film is a mix of interviews and “candid” footage with Malala’s family about her uniquely independent upbringing in Pakistan’s Swat valley, the ominous arrival of the Taliban and all the events that followed. This is mixed with a lot of hand drawn animation that illustrates some key events and Yousafzai philosophical musings, all of which help to give ‘He Named Me Malala’ a rather mythical quality, and whether intentionally or not, depict Malala in a position of near sainthood.

The problem with making a documentary about the life of a teenager, despite her extraordinary circumstances, is that when you get past the well-established events into the actual person, it’s just not that interesting. There are cursory heart-warming attempts at digging beneath the persona but to no real avail, and despite the trauma this is a normal girl whose character is not yet fully formed and without a lifetime of experiences to merit a 90 minute documentary portrait.

There’s also no attempt to dig into the mythological aspect of her now iconic status and what that says about society, indeed the near prophetic origins of her name and the liberal use of animation here only make it more pronounced.

So what we’re left with is what ‘He Named Me Malala’ is really about, not so much a rounded documentary but a promotional tool for Malala’s commendable global activism efforts. Which is great for, rather fittingly, educational and motivational purposes for youngsters, but unless you’re completely ignorant of her story, there’s not much else aside from a recent historical recap and a feel-good story.

The Bottom Line…
Although not a rounded or compelling documentary, ‘He Named Me Malala’ is an uplifting piece of advocacy filmmaking that’s fitting as an educational and motivational tool for a Malala Yousafzai inspired generation, cementing her as the patron saint of global education.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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