Beasts of No Nation

Rebel soldiers visit carnage on a small town.

Beasts of No Nation is not a pleasant movie, but if you have been paying any attention to Africa, not totally unexpected. What struck me most was that the towns and villages were totally unprepared to deal with an assault by armed troops. They had no defenses to speak of, no means of escape, no plan, and apparently not even an inkling of what they should do. Sometimes a village was a target, either because they supported the enemy (whoever that was at the moment) by giving them a bowl of rice, or because they had supplies, and sometimes just because it happened to be on the way to wherever they were headed. When the soldiers come into town all the people can do is lie down and die.
     If things have been calm for a long time, or the war has been far away, it is understandable that people would not be too concerned. But this level of unpreparedness smacks of willfully ignoring the warning signs of impending doom. It could be that these towns are in such desperate circumstances that they cannot afford to make any investments in defense. But they have buildings and streets and electricity. They are not that desperate. I suspect either government propaganda or incompetence, or perhaps a great deal of both.
    The movie ends with our hero (one of the murderous child soldiers) in a UN (United Nations) sponsored camp on the beach, playing with other children. A fairly tale ending if there ever was one. It is especially reprehensible since the UN seems to be a great advocate of disarming people so they can be slaughtered by their enemies.

The financing of this film and its distribution is a story in itself:

• Rolling Stone by David Fear
• Wired by Angela Watercutter
• Fast Company by Nicole LaPorte