The Specter of Boko Haram (2023) Movie Drinking Game
Take a Drink: for sounds of violence
Take a Drink: for each song sung
Take a Drink: whenever news comes in one someone who’s missing
Do a Shot: whenever anyone actually says “Boko Haram”
By: Henry J. Fromage (Two Beers) –
I’ve been trying to catch this Rotterdam 2023-debuting documentary for awhile, but it will finally be available to the masses thanks to OVID.tv on July 9th.
The Specter of Boko Haram examines the dark influence the notorious Islamist terrorist organization casts over a Cameroonian/Nigerian border town and three of its elementary school-aged children in particular.
A Toast
First-time feature director Cyrielle Raingou, who is herself from Northern Cameroon, envelops you in the surprising mundanity of regular life while encircled with the constant threat of violence. We never see the violence, which makes the matter of fact recounting of harrowing situations, of Death riding down and destroying that regular life, all the more shocking.
These children have all seen things no children ever should’ve, underlined by what they don’t say, by the boy’s sketchbook with drawings of brutal killings interspersed among soccer stars and water birds. The girl is remarkably composed throughout, a survivor, but when the boys run away from their orphaned existence, from boring school and bad memories, who can blame them?
Beer Two
Raingou’s slice of life focus cuts both ways, as it can feel a bit meandering and unfocused at times, particularly in the beginning.
Verdict
The Specter of Boko Haram is a devastating documentary about living every day with terror, its memories, and its constant threat.
