Rafiki
Film Movement | Release Date: April 19, 2019 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
68
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 17 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
4
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
83
The Film StageJared MobarakApr 16, 2019
This is a contemporary slice of life drama that provides its central characters the agency with which to choose the existence they desire regardless of what cultural, societal, or familial traditions demand. These women aren’t merely bucking against the religious norms of gendered relationships, but the patriarchy at-large. They are here to be more than wives and mothers. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesJustin ChangMay 9, 2019
To merely describe what happens in Rafiki would be to overlook its transporting sense of place, its striking visual pleasures and its credible and moving performances. Read full review
75
Washington PostAnn HornadayMay 6, 2019
As an example of the filmmaker’s house style — which she calls “Afrobubblegum” — Rafiki presents a radiant, vivacious portrait of young love that owes as much to “Romeo and Juliet” as “Bend It Like Beckham” and “Moonlight.” Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comOdie HendersonApr 19, 2019
To feel seen is a potent, potentially life-changing emotion, and only those who were never in the dark would have a moral problem with it. Rafiki makes this serious point quite effectively, never losing its ebullience. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubKatie RifeApr 17, 2019
In some ways, Rafiki recalls Nijla Mu’min’s 2018 film "Jinn," which also superimposes a unique, beautifully realized point of view onto a conventional coming-of-age story. Read full review
70
The New York TimesBen KenigsbergApr 18, 2019
This is a love story for the time, not for the ages. Read full review
70
Screen DailyAllan HunterMay 19, 2018
Charismatic performances by Samantha Mugatsia and Sheila Munyiva make you believe in the characters and invest in the romance. When harsh reality inevitably intrudes on their dream love, the emotional impact is all the deeper. Read full review
70
VarietyGuy LodgeMay 19, 2018
Even when Rafiki irons out its emotions a little too neatly, however, Mugatsia and Munyiva’s relaxed, sparking chemistry quickens its heartbeat. Read full review
70
TheWrapSteve PondMay 19, 2018
Kahiu gives the film a brightness and vibrancy that works to counterbalance the perilous waters into which Kena and Ziki are venturing. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleSteve DavisMay 1, 2019
While the tone of Rafiki is simple and direct, director Kahiu demonstrates a delicate touch when she enhances Kena and Ziki’s early euphoric attraction to one another through a subtle shift in the otherwise vibrant cinematography by Christopher Wessels. Read full review
67
IndieWireEric KohnMay 19, 2018
Wanuri Kahiu’s sophomore feature is just good enough to give its modest intentions a historic purpose, bringing fresh context to an old formula while hitting the expected emotional beats. Read full review
65
Vanity FairRichard LawsonMay 19, 2018
If the film is uneven—with such an exuberant beginning and disappointingly rote climax—that may simply be because Kahiu wanted to communicate as many truths of her home country as she could. Read full review
63
Slant MagazinePat BrownApr 17, 2019
The film's slotting of two African women into a familiar romantic structure represents a radical and important upending of contemporary Kenyan sexual mores. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyMay 19, 2018
Its simplistic observation of romantic love in its purest form colliding with political, religious, familial and societal intolerance seems designed to speak clearly to teenage audiences experiencing similar struggles between identity and oppression. Those well-meaning intentions only take the film so far, however, and mature audiences will be left wishing for greater narrative complexity. Read full review
60
New York Magazine (Vulture)Emily YoshidaMay 19, 2018
Its lead protagonists and their endless reserve of raw, bittersweet chemistry are Kahiu’s greatest asset. Read full review
60
CineVueJoe WalshMay 19, 2018
While the premise of Rafiki is well-worn, the context of the film is not and Kahiu brings fresh zest to a familiar story which is told with spirit. Read full review
60
The GuardianGwilym MumfordMay 19, 2018
What Kahiu’s film lacks in originality, it makes up for in its depiction of the giddy flush of first love. Mugatsia and Munyiva have an easy, unfussy chemistry that overcomes some creakier moments of dialogue. Read full review
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