FeatureFilm
The First Grader
- Rated: M - Contains violence and offensive language. First Grader,The
- Running Length:1hr 43mins
- Cast:Naomie Harris, Tony Kgoroge, Oliver Litondo
Session Times
Summary
Based on a true story, The First Grader is miles away from director Justin Chadwick’s last film The Other Boleyn Girl. Filmed entirely in Kenya, with much of its cast made up of locals, the film has an authenticity that most Hollywood productions don’t manage to capture with budgets 10 times the size of this film’s.
In 2003 84 year-old Kimani Maruge receives a letter from the government. He’s determined to read it himself and heads off to the local school, taking the government’s promise of education for all literally.
The principal and her colleague turn him away, sceptical of his motives. But Maruge hasn’t gotten where he is by accepting defeat. Day after day he shows up at the school until Obinchu relents and allows him to join the crowded classroom. His presence is disruptive, but an education, as presented here, is his right.
Maruge’s past has been tainted by violence. He was a Mau Mau freedom fighter and the violence of the rebellion is never far from his mind. Even something as innocuous as sharpening his pencil can send him spiralling into flashbacks to a more dangerous time.
Heartbreaking and life affirming, The First Grader is one of those films that spurs you to do bigger and better things in your own life.