Something Necessary opened in cinemas on Thursday 24th January 2013 to a lot of excitement. I was at the premier that was at The Junction and you could feel the anticipation in the air. There was a red carpet, cameras flashing, dressed up ladies and gents and an after party at the Wine Bar and Mercury both at The Junction. The premier was open to members of the public at just Kshs 450 which is a pretty good deal as most premiers are overpriced. So if you weren’t there, I don’t know where you were!
The film is directed by well-known Kenyan Director, Judy Kibinge and produced by Ginger Ink Films and One Fine Day Films who produced Soul Boy and Nairobi Half Life. It tells the story of Anne (played by Susan Wanjiru) and Joseph (played by Walter Lagat). Anne is a survivor of the post-election violence (PEV) that rocked Kenya in 2007/2008. Her husband is murdered, her son is in a coma and she herself is hospitalized after a gang of youths breaks into their home at the height of the PEV. Joseph is a perpetrator of the PEV and was one of the youths that broke into Anne’s home. Fate unites the two characters when Anne begins to rebuild her home and Joseph is hired as a casual labourer by the Contractor working on Anne’s house.
Anne struggles to rebuild her life in the face of what seems like insurmountable challenges. She hardly has money to pay for the repairs to her home and her husband’s step brother wishes to take the house away from her. Joseph struggles with a guilty conscience as he seeks to make amends for his actions. Poverty keeps him from advancing in his studies, he can hardly get a job and the gang he was a member of won’t let him leave so easily. In the end, they are just two people trying to make sense of events whose web they found themselves entangled in.
The story is told with an interspersing of actual footage from the PEV. It’s a well-shot film and has a brilliant cast which is great as the majority of the cast are newbies. The script has a strong storyline and with its subject matter being the PEV, could have been heavy to watch. However, there are some light moments in the film that help pace out the tear-jerking scenes. One of the scenes that is difficult to watch is when Anne has an abortion in a cheap motel room after she discovers she is pregnant by one of her attackers. It’s quite jarring and I must say, a bold scene to include in the film.
The film is a timely one with Kenya heading to the polls come March 4th. It reminds us that we have yet to reach our goal of national cohesion. Another reason I think it’s a timely film is because it’s one of the few Kenyan films that chronicles an event in Kenyan history. We hardly record our history outside news archives. It’s refreshing to see a film draw inspiration from an important piece of Kenyan history and hope it’s the start of many to come. There should be at least five films on the PEV by now!
All in all, it’s a great film that all, especially Kenyans, should see. Something Necessary will be showing at the Junction at the 11.30am, 7.30pm and 9.30pm shows. Go see it if you haven’t already!