This Netflix film is good: about a boy living in extreme poverty in Malawi, Africa. He creates a wind turbine and goes on to study at top universities.

Chiwetel Ejiofor directs. The acting is especially good. Overall, it was pretty standard, but it's a heartwarming story and is easily found on Netflix.

Decided to watch this last night because I forgot Ejiofor had directed a movie. The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind is a movie based on a true story about a kid who saves his town from a famine. It’s an amazing story with good direction and great acting. The only thing that would penalize this is the movie slows down at the ending which is supposed to be very emotional and it just let me down. I’m really happy the Ejiofor tried out directing and I do believe he could make it somewhere, just the ending didn’t stick it correctly.

This would probably look like a pretty standard real-life inspirational story turned fictional movie, except that it's so rich and well-realized. The performances are terrific, and there's a lot of passion and emotion to the story. But what impressed me more was how thoroughly this film sinks into a local culture, capturing everything from the shifting tides of politics in a newly democratic environment to the unspoken presence of a cult that appears at transitional rituals like funerals. This is a very lived-in film, a convincing portrait of a society rather than the kind of glossy abstraction that comes out of so many based-on-a-true-story situations, and as a first feature, it's just stunning.

I had very low expectations for this film. Coz I thought it started off boring.

But boy, Chiwetel handled this material like such a pro, you can't even tell it's his directorial debut. His eye for detail, subtle detail. And not to mention he learned to speak the local dialect, which he uses for a large majority of the scenes in the film. My respect to him as an actor was pretty much cemented after his dumbfounding performance in 12 Years a Slave. But now as a director? I'm truly excited to see where this road takes him.

This was a beautifully done film that I not only believe every African filmmaker should watch, but hope that it'll give light to the VAST sea of stories that we have as a people - and not only from 'true story' literature.

It’s a decent directorial debut from Chiwetel Ejiofor about a boy who saves his village from starvation by using wind power to get water. While the performances are strong and the story is nice, knowing the ending right from the beginning means the story loses any sort of stakes it may have had, so I never felt very emotionally invested.

this film has its ups and downs but i feel like we just should celebrate the story which is both inspiring and powerful

ADDED TO “2019 RANKED” :) 

A sympathetically and solidly made true life tale that doesn’t quite meet the sum of its parts, largely due to the crucial one that’s missing: the protagonists character development. The actor playing “the boy” is a talented young find, but the role is somewhat inert, lacking the depth and growth that would more easily pull the viewer into the picture. Truth be told, the supporting characters are often vastly more compelling, and Chiwetel Ejiofor’s performance is so damn good that he inadvertently steals the movie. He does an admirable job in in the director’s chair too, crafting a convincing sense of place in addition to maintaining a gentle, family-friendly tone without sugarcoating the story’s many hardships. A sturdy and aesthetically pleasing watch, if not an essential one. 7/10

Super bacana

Why have I never heard of this gem before?? And it is Chiwetel's directorial debut and IT IS BEAUTIFUL

muito chato

A beautiful and touching movie that proves that our brain is our biggest and most important evolutionary trait. A must see!

True story of the impact of both famine and a corrupt and careless government in Malawi. Through reading and experimentation a boy learns how to build a wind powered pump and in doing so changes outcomes for his community. Inspiring movie, great to watch with the family. Reminder to be grateful for all the services and ease we have in urban areas; also opens the world through learning about people, life and culture in a different place, hearing and reading (has subtitles) a different language.

I miss Chiwetel Ejiofor!

The movie is just a little too miserable, but that’s probably a better choice than making it too triumphant. Simba’s character quickly figures out how to help the village’s irrigation efforts, but he has to fight for the barest scraps to let him do so. The real-life footage at the end seems patronizing—look at this neato kid and his windmill! The global community has no right to marvel at William when our money winds up clear-cutting his village and leaving him and everyone around him hungry.

Instead of the brown-yellow filter that is notoriously used for Mexico and the Middle East, Malawi gets a brown-white color filter—I guess failing crops are yellow enough already.

sinceramente? eu não tenho palavras.

Chiwetel Ejiofor wrote, directed, and starred as the uneducated farmer whose son would ultimately deliver his family from famine. I’m glad Chiwetel brought the story and sacrifice of William Kamkwamba and his family to a wider audience. I was stunned by the repeated setbacks and warring with each other when it seemed there was nothing left to lose and yet there still was.

Me gusta la historia que cuenta, pero la verdad es que no me ha dejado mucho poso.

Emocionante!!! Baseado em fatos reais.

7.1

www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeeLjgFKEls

Decided to watch this last night because I forgot Ejiofor had directed a movie. The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind is a movie based on a true story about a kid who saves his town from a famine. It’s an amazing story with good direction and great acting. The only thing that would penalize this is the movie slows down at the ending which is supposed to be very emotional and it just let me down. I’m really happy the Ejiofor tried out directing and I do believe he could make it somewhere, just the ending didn’t stick it correctly.