An unyielding, brutal film

Rating: 9/10 (15 November 2015)

"Beasts of No Nation" is a remarkably poignant film that leaves everything on the table. It's more than a war film - it's a portrait of human suffering, brutality, loss, love, and innocence. We see everything play out through the perspective of a child, and as such, we see the devastation that war brings to innocence. The movie takes the audience on an unrelenting journey through the eyes of a child soldier. This journey is incredibly emotional, heartbreaking, and brutal. Cary Fukunaga's masterful directing never loses focus on the affect that war has on the human condition, and on the corruption of childhood innocence by the brutality of mankind. This movie is difficult to recommend to just anyone; not because it isn't a great film - which it is - but because no one takes pleasure in watching a child's life fall to pieces. No one want to see a child brainwashed into becoming a monster he never wanted to be. But the reality is....this film is reality. Child soldiers are a reality. "Beasts of No Nation" serves as a painful - although necessary - reminder that war scars the human spirit. Don't turn a blind eye to this movie.