The First Grader
National Geographic Entertainment | Release Date: May 13, 2011 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
56
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 21 Critic Reviews
Positive:
9
Mixed:
11
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
Charlotte ObserverLawrence ToppmanMay 26, 2011
I have never seen elementary schoolers more passionate about education than the ones I met at a school in rural Kenya, not far from the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesBetsy SharkeyMay 13, 2011
Anchored by a lovely performance from Oliver Litondo as Maruge and an exuberant Naomie Harris as Jane Obinchu, the school principal who champions his cause, the result is a tearful, joyful, imperfect, yet nearly irresistible ode to the human spirit. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterStephen FarberMay 9, 2011
Chadwick strikes a perfect balance between humor and tragic gravity, and the result is that an unknown story seems certain to stir the hearts of audiences worldwide. Read full review
80
VarietyPeter DebrugeMay 9, 2011
The uplifting true story of world's oldest primary school student, The First Grader reels you in with its human-interest hook, but packs an even more vital agenda: enlisting Kenyan locals to share little-known details of their nation's independence. Read full review
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick GroenMay 20, 2011
This is potentially compelling, but truncated flashbacks are far too crude a mechanism for exploring not only the intricacies of that tumultuous period in Kenyan history but also its ongoing legacy. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleAmy BiancolliMay 20, 2011
For all of its brutal flashbacks and heavy-handed devices, The First Grader works best when it works quietly. Read full review
67
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerMay 14, 2011
Better than bland but never quite rises above the level of a pretty good TV movie of the week. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubAlison WillmoreMay 12, 2011
The First Grader offers a tumultuous but uplifting journey. Read full review
63
Orlando SentinelRoger MooreMay 24, 2011
Never graduates to the uplifting tale it sets out to be. Read full review
60
EmpireIan FreerJun 20, 2011
An amazing tru-life story that's Hollywoodised within an inch of its life. A missed opportunity for something really special. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierMay 13, 2011
Director Justin Chadwick ("The Other Boleyn Girl") shows admirable restraint bringing this true story to the screen, and Litando does much with glimmers of emotion and wells of dignity. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumMay 11, 2011
Plays more like a teaching tool than a dynamic drama. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleKimberley JonesMay 26, 2011
We have pretty much all the information we need within the first half-hour, which undercuts the supposedly climactic reveal of the contents of Maruge's letter and renders the torturous flashbacks unnecessary for narrative purposes. And not a little bit sadomasochistic, too – an ill fit for a PG-13 family film. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeMark FeeneyMay 19, 2011
You marvel all the more at Litondo's and Harris's performances, considering how much claptrap Ann Peacock's script requires them to put up with. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderJ.R. JonesMay 19, 2011
The true story of Kimani N'gan'ga Maruge, an 84-year-old Kenyan who entered primary school in hope of learning to read, inspired this pleasant but routine exercise in third-world uplift. Read full review
50
Boxoffice MagazineJohn P. McCarthyMay 13, 2011
Even given narrative license, South African-born screenwriter Ann Peacock has trouble cobbling together a truly compelling plot that deals with Kenyan history, including tribalism, in a detailed way. Read full review
50
New York PostV.A. MusettoMay 13, 2011
Too bad the script is predictable at every turn. Read full review
50
The New York TimesA.O. ScottMay 12, 2011
This ambition - to provoke thought while tugging at heartstrings - makes The First Grader fascinating and frustrating in almost equal measure. Read full review
40
Time OutEric HynesMay 10, 2011
A lot of history gets horned into this undeniably inspirational parable, though slick execution and simplistic storytelling make it a lesson suitable only for easily impressed elementary-school students. Read full review
40
Village VoiceMichelle OrangeMay 10, 2011
Chadwick veers frequently into flashbacks to Maruge's past as a Mau Mau resistance fighter-mostly prolonged scenes of torture and violence that do little to inform or propel the present-day story. Poorly defined tribal lines flare up, and Jane's life is threatened, the point at which the script's Hollywood contrivances open up and swallow this often charming film whole. Read full review
38
Washington PostMichael O'SullivanMay 19, 2011
It's heartwarming. But the film never really takes fire. Read full review
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