46. On Her Shoulders; movie review

ON HER SHOULDERS
Cert 12A
94 mins
BBFC advice: Contains references to sexual violence

Who can honestly imagine being in a city which is invaded by terrorists who either kill or sexually violate every family member?
Only those who have lived through such barbarity will be able to understand the mental and the physical scars.
This is probably why people have such an indifferent or even hostile reaction to refugees. They just can't bend their minds around what has happened to them.
Nadia Murad has found herself trying to change mindsets and explain the horrors of brutality and the misery of the camps which have followed it.
Murad is the subject of Alexandria Bombach's documentary which follows the young woman as she addresses politicians and media on a worldwide stage.
She never would have wanted to become the voice of her people but feels compelled to speak out because of the horrors that have been endured and continue to be.
Every day she has to repeat what has happened to her and every interview and every speech takes a deep emotional toll.
She is helped by a loyal group of friends and colleagues in a foreign land but she would give anything to play back time and be in the bosom of her family before ISIS wreaked their evil.
What remains of Murad's Yazidi community - an ethnic minority - live in giant refugee camps in Iraq.
Her story is heartbreaking and her determination to fight on behalf of her people is worthy of a film.
The problem is that, consistent with many documentaries, too much is unsaid because there is no narration.
It would have benefited hugely from clearer explanation of Yazidi history and a timeline around the ISIS attacks and mapping out of who has been allowed to migrate and what future plans are.
These details were not clear so Murad's final goal and the hopes of her people was not as transparent as it should have been.
And I am afraid the movie is very repetitive. Shy young woman goes from political meeting to political meeting to make the same points.
Her efforts are entirely worthwhile and must be done in this way but shuttle diplomacy doesn't make riveting viewing - particularly when progress is so slow.
In short, there is no doubt Murad's is an inspirational and important story, I just fear that Bombach was too close to it.

Reasons to watch: Heartbreaking unknown refugee story
Reasons to avoid: It needs clearer explanation

Laughs: None
Jumps: None
Vomit: None
Nudity: None
Overall rating: 6.5/10

Did you know? Hundreds of thousands of Yazidis still live in displacement camps scattered across Iraq's northern Kurdistan region. 

The final word. Alexandria Bombach: "While a lot of people focus on her strength and resilience, two of the most important attributes of Nadia's personality to me (was how) incredibly gracious she was with me in allowing me into this world and also being very patient with me, which was just above and beyond what I expected from somebody who has already been through so much."

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