Wallay Film Difficulty Ranking: 2
How many times have you thought about what your life would be like if you were born in a different country or even in a different era? You may romanticize about life in the past, but in reality, even if you were a king you’re quality of life would be incomparable to what it is now. In Wallay young Ady is taken to stay with his family in Burkina Faso. It’s a completely different world to the one he is used to in France but he walks around like a spoiled brat until he realises that his holiday is permanent.
Why Watch Wallay?
- You want to see what life is like in Burkina Faso
- If you love great coming-of-age stories (perfect for fans of Hunt for the Wilderpeople)
- If you love seeing arrogant and annoying kids get disciplined
- To support great African film (to ensure more of it gets made in the future)
Breakdown
Wallay starts with a 13 year old boy in France writing a letter to a girl. The image of a sweet 13 year old is quickly dispelled as the next scene shows him buying some new trainers off of the Parisian black market and getting told off by his dad when he returns home.
So, how does his dad properly discipline him? His dad takes him to spend some time with his family in small town Burkina Faso. What young Ady doesn’t realise is that this is not just a holiday. His father leaves him and he is forced to help his strict uncle work to repay him for the money he stole from his dad.
At the beginning, Ady walks around Burkina still surrounded in his materialist glass house symbolised by his Beats headphones and smartphone. He seems to wear a necklace of the African continent for fashion and not because of his roots. But as he is forced to pay back the money he stole he slowly opens up to life in Burkina Faso and discovers the treasure that is his cultural heritage.
Conclusion
Ady is spoiled. Not in the sense that he was well off, but because he lives in an economically developed country with luxuries that he (like a lot of us) all take for granted. In Burkina Faso, he learns he has been lucky to have grown up in France whilst also discovering the beauty of his Burkinabe roots.