Rebelle: Movie Review

Rebelle: Movie Review

Cast: Rachel Mwanza
Director: Kim Nguyen

It's the rather hard-hitting world of child soldiers we go with this Canadian film, also known as Rebelle.

Mwanza plays Komona, a child whose African village is ransacked by rebels at the start of the movie and who's forced to join the forces and kill her own parents as her first act as a child soldier.


When she survives a confrontation, the powers that be believe she is a witch and a lucky charm for their leader, The Great Tiger. But Komona decides the life is not for her and plots running away, with one other.

War Witch aka Rebelle is a harrowing and somewhat fraught viewing experience, but one which is utterly incredible given how you are transfixed by what plays out. What begins with a voiceover, quickly turns into a massacre and leaves you with your heart in your mouth, which is agog with horror.

Thankfully this is not one of those flicks which becomes an unrelentingly difficult watch because of it - mainly due to the performance of Mwanza, whose innocence in the face of pure horror is captivating. 


It's not the easiest watch though and a very human performance grounds the piece in a reality which draws you in when you least expect it. Disturbing imagery pervades the film too - one shot sees the forests covered with white ghosts seen by Komona, it's certainly the kind of film for which the word haunting was coined.

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