Shukria (2018) User Reviews

An Oblique, Beautifully Shot and Somewhat Cliched Take on Conflict

[Marc_Horrickan · 6/10 · 10 October 2018]

This played before THE LAST FIGHT at the 2018 Raindance Festival and was a short film that shifted from striking, near-tableaux imagery, to a far more conventional dully allegorical close. A young woman in a war zone becomes pregnant, labours in some strife and finally gives birth, all the while surrounded by the women of her family. There is a sense that the opening imagery obliquely deals with conflict devoid of violence, while the close shows the violent resolution of birth. One thing is for certain, Hajat Tocilla (who plays the eponymous young woman) is a striking screen presence that deserves bigger and better things in the future.