Wadjda (2012)

A story set in Saudi Arabia and focused on the experiences of a young girl who challenges her country's traditions.

Director:

Haifaa Al-Mansour

Writer:

Haifaa Al-Mansour (screenplay)

Stars:

Reem Abdullah, Waad Mohammed, Abdullrahman Al Gohani

10 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Reem Abdullah	...	Mother
Waad Mohammed	...	Wadjda
Abdullrahman Al Gohani	...	Abdullah
Ahd	...	Ms. Hussa
Sultan Al Assaf	...	Father
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Dana Abdullilah	...	Salma
Rehab Ahmed	...	Noura
Rafa Al Sanea	...	Fatima
Mohammed Albahry	...	Contractor
Mariam Alghamdi	...	Grandmother
Ali Algorbani	...	Salesman 1
Sara Aljaber	...	Leila
Mohammed Alkhozain	...	Bearded man in toy shop
Maram Alkohzaim	...	Contestant
Mariam Alkohzaim	...	Contestant

Storyline

WADJDA is a 10-year-old girl living in a suburb of Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. Although she lives in a conservative world, Wadjda is fun loving, entrepreneurial and always pushing the boundaries of what she can get away with. After a fight with her friend Abdullah, a neighborhood boy she shouldn't be playing with, Wadjda sees a beautiful green bicycle for sale. She wants the bicycle desperately so that she can beat Abdullah in a race. But Wadjda's mother won't allow it, fearing repercussions from a society that sees bicycles as dangerous to a girl's virtue. So Wadjda decides to try and raise the money herself. At first, Wadjda's mother is too preoccupied with convincing her husband not to take a second wife to realize what's going on. And soon enough Wadjda's plans are thwarted when she is caught running various schemes at school. Just as she is losing hope of raising enough money, she hears of a cash prize for a Koran recitation competition at her school. She devotes herself...

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Plot Keywords:

bicycle | saudi arabia | competition | school | money | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for thematic elements, brief mild language and smoking

Details

Country:

Saudi Arabia Germany

Language:

Arabic

Release Date:

15 August 2013 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Den gröna cykeln

Filming Locations:

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Company Credits

Production Co:

Highlook Communications Group, Razor Film Produktion GmbH, Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Venice Film Festival 2012 (2012)

User Reviews

How to survive

10-year-old Wadjda lives in Saudi Arabia. She's a bit rebellious, which means she wears basket shoes in school, listens to Western rock at home and has befriended a boy her own age. But she mustn't sing too loud, because the men can hear her and get offended.

Wadjda wants to go further and have her own bicycle, which invites trouble in her country. The story is told in a very warm way and you learn one thing. People in cultures totally different from yours are very much like you.

Realism here. Everyday people having everyday problems, but not the problems you have. A humanistic film, which makes it concerning everybody.