Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Bookmark this pageHeart of Fire (2009)
Director: Luigi Falorni
Movie review
From Time Out London
Based on the autobiography of Senait Mehari, former child soldier in the Eritrean Liberation Front, this well-meaning dramatisation (from the co-director of ‘The Story of the Weeping Camel’) falls into the trap of providing decorative exotic suffering for middle-class Western audiences to tut-tut over. Centered on an archetypal big-brown-eyed wise-child performance from ten-year-old Letekidan Micael (heading a cast of non-professional Eritreans who defied their government to take part), it starts with plucky little Awet in the safety of an Italian-run convent school, where she learns moral precepts that stand her in good stead when her ex-freedom fighter father hands her over to one of the two rival liberation armies locked in conflict over the best way to escape the Ethiopian yoke. The sight of children taking part in a military campaign is milked for shock value, needless to say, while the pint-sized heroine’s defiant adherence to humanitarian values renders her more a stand-in for arthouse viewers’ right-on worldview than a real child in a specific dramatic situation.Author: Trevor Johnston
Time Out London Issue 2040: 24-30 September, 2009
User reviews of this film
-
- Hackster said...
- Posted on Sep 19 2010 22:44 A good simple tale like a parable. Teaching while it engages the viewer.
- Report as inappropriate
Cast & crew
Director: Luigi Falorni
Cast: Letekidan Micael, Solomie Micael, Seble Tilahun
Genre(s): War
Duration: 92 mins
UK Release: Sep 25 2009
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Has David Cronenberg turned tame?
Has director David Cronenberg veered too far from his radical and bloody roots with new film 'A Dangerous Method'?
The 10 worst date movies
Just in time for Valentine's Day, we present ten of the least romantic films ever made
Where to watch this year's Oscar-nominated films
Find out where to watch 2012's Oscar-nominated films in London cinemas
10 unlikely badboy biopics
Featuring Phil Collins, Jeremy Clarkson, Nick Clegg, David Starkey and a host of other unlikely subjects
Interview: Sean Durkin on 'Martha Marcy May Marlene'
The first-time director of the brilliant new thriller discusses religious cults and robot boxing
Pop-up cinema for Valentine's Day
Side-step romantic clichés with some alternative Valentine’s viewing
What do you think?
Post your review now