He Named Me Malala (2015)

A look at the events leading up to the Taliban's attack on Pakistani schoolgirl, Malala Yousafzai, for speaking out on girls' education followed by the aftermath, including her speech to the United Nations.

Director:

Davis Guggenheim

Writer:

Malala Yousafzai (inspired by the book: I Am Malala)

Stars:

Malala Yousafzai, Ziauddin Yousafzai, Toor Pekai Yousafzai

Won 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 6 wins & 20 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Malala Yousafzai	...	Self
Ziauddin Yousafzai	...	Self
Toor Pekai Yousafzai	...	Self
Khushal Yousafzai	...	Self
Atal Yousafzai	...	Self
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Bono	...	Self
Jon Stewart	...	Self

Storyline

A look at the events leading up to the Taliban's attack on Pakistani schoolgirl, Malala Yousafzai, for speaking out on girls' education followed by the aftermath, including her speech to the United Nations.

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Plot Keywords:

animated segments | father daughter relationship | nobel prize winner | adolescence | survivor | 

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Taglines:

One Child, One Teacher, One Book and One Pen Can Change the World

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements involving disturbing images and threats

Did You Know?

Trivia

In 2014, Malala Yousafzai was jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize with Indian child rights activist Kailash Satyarthi. The Norwegian Academy awarded them the prize "for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education" At the age of 17, Malala became the youngest person to ever win a Nobel Prize.

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Quotes

Malala Yousafzai: I tell my story, not because it's unique, but because it is not. It is the story of many girls.

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Connections

Features The Daily Show: Malala Yousafzai (2013)

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Soundtracks

I Am Many
Written by Alicia Keys, Thomas Newman

User Reviews

He Named Me Malala: Not at all what I expected

Malala Yousafzai is a young activist for womens rights. At 15yrs old she was shot in the head by Taliban but regardless continued to spread her message worldwide as an ambassador for equality.

I expected a powerful documentary telling her entire story but what I got felt very watered down. Focusing as much on her personal life and that of her father as the real matters this wasn't as gritty nor as emotional as I'd expected.

For this I blame the director, I don't know what vision he had but this is less a thought provoking documentary and more a Behind The Music (1997) kind of thing.

Her message is deep, it's meaningful and one that should be spread but this documentary is not the way of doing it. To me these 90 minutes were counter productive in many ways. She fights for equality but defends the religion that has prevented it and resulted in all the atrocities that have befallen her sex and resulted in her catching a bullet to the face.

I do love a good documentary, this simply isn't one.

The Good:

Core message is great

The Bad:

Too light hearted

Excessive focus on her father

Religion is the cause of all of this so why defend it?

Things I Learnt From This Documentary:

If your doctrines say that you should be subserviant and you deserve all the ills that befall you from those that claim to love you, then it makes perfect sense to try and make people ignore it as opposed to leaving the religion.....

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA United Arab Emirates

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 October 2015 (Germany)

Also Known As:

He Named Me Malala

Filming Locations:

Birmingham, West Midlands, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$61,808, 4 October 2015

Gross USA:

$2,668,936

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$3,433,606

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fox Searchlight Pictures, Imagenation Abu Dhabi FZ, Participant

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1