In many ways, she's a typical teen, rolling her eyes at her little brothers and giggling uncontrollably after Google Image-searching Brad Pitt. She's very close to her dad, but cheerfully theorizes that her mother prefers the other two children. She worries about fitting in at her London school. But Malala Yousafzai has already shaken the world.
An activist for girls' education, which was banned in her home country of Pakistan, Malala survived an attempt on her life by the Taliban. She's now paralyzed on the left side of her face, does media tours like other teens attend soccer games, and is nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. "He Named Me Malala" isn't groundbreaking filmmaking, but it doesn't need to be. Instead, it's well-balanced and sweet, highlighting the strong voice of an even stronger young woman.
Director Davis Guggenheim balances news footage from before, during and after the incident and interviews with Malala and her family with animated interludes depicting the "original" Malala: a Pashtun woman who encouraged the Afghan forces during an 1880 battle against the British, and lost her own life as a result. Teenage Malala's father, Ziauddin, an educator-turned-activist as the Taliban forces gained power in Pakistan, gave his daughter this name because he believed she could change the world. And she has: After the October 2012 shooting, Malala became a poster child for girls' education worldwide. Targeted by the Taliban for her public presence in Pakistan, Malala was shot three times after boarding her school bus. In 2014 (after the documentary was filmed), she became the youngest-ever winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.
Guggenheim almost doesn't need to do much for his star to shine. Accustomed to public speaking from a very early age, Malala is bright, articulate and driven. Guggenheim brings out her "normal" teenage habits just enough without downplaying the significant impact Malala has had on her world, her father's encouragement and her incredible sense of survival. "He Named Me Malala" should be shown in schools, discussed and savored. America has a long way to go where treatment of women is concerned, but to live in a country where girls have the right to education is not to be taken for granted — and should be happening everywhere.
https://youtu.be/vE5gSHJkusU&w=514