Queen of Katwe *movie review*

Y’all give it up one time for #BlackDisney, when I say they did that with #QueenOfKatwe they muther freakin came and slayed the true depiction behind what it means to be an African woman, an African man, an African boy, and last but not least and AFRICAN GIRL.

Like always I am here to give my readers a quick synopsis of the movie and my viewpoint on the total production of Queen of Katwe. The movie is set in Katwe (hence the name of the movie) I’m sure some of you might have thought that was the main character’s name, but no it is the name of the slum that she lives in inside of Kampala, Uganda. This movie was such an eye opener. I have seen numerous movies set in Africa that depicts the harsh living environments some of the people experience. The majority of those movies have main characters that are boys so we only get to see a certain side of the story. Queen of Katwe offers us the opportunity to experience life in an African slum through the eyes of Phiona ( the main character who is played by Madina Nalwanga) We get to see how her family struggles to survive and how her mother ( Lupita Nyongo) tries to hold it all together.

The world of Chess was introduced to Phiona by Robert Katende ( David Oyelowo) you might remember him from roles in The Help, The Butler, and his most famous role as Rev Dr. Martin Luther King Jr in Ave DuVernay’s SELMA. He helps guides, motivates, and encourages Phiona along her Chess Journey. He even footed the bill so that she could participate in some of the chess tournament in her local area.

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For those of you who do not know Queen of Katwe is based off of the actual life story of Phiona Mutesi. You can learn more about her story by reading The Queen of Katwe: A Story of Life, Chess, and One Extraordinary Girl’s Dream of Becoming a Grandmaster. 

Playing the role of Phiona’s mother Lupita showed us just why she’s an Academy Award-winning actress. She fit right in as an African mother even thought she has not official become a mother in her personal life. Her acting was phenomenal and she had me believing that this was how and where she grew up. When in reality it is not. upita’s father was a professor at the University of Nairobi and she grew up middle class, far from the Slum life.

One reason why I really enjoyed this movie is because Disney gave the viewer a look into how hard life can sometimes be in certain parts of Africa. Now let me say this first, all of Africa is not run down. All the children do not live in slums and are not starving. None black people like to display little black children as the only ones starving and there are kids of every race starving worldwide. Hell, we have children starving here in the United States. I just wanted to get that off my chest because that has always been a huge pet peeve of mines. Okay back to the review.

I have never really been interested in the game of Chess. The thought of learning how to play the game has crossed my mind once or twice, but it never really stuck around for long to amount to much. After watching “Queen of Katwe” I now have a strong desire to learn how to play the game that challenges you mentally and can possibly push you pass your limits. Y’all, I’m literally over here like, who’s about to teach me how to play chess. I’m 26 years old and way behind schedule so I need someone to school me in the game ASAP.

I really admire how the game of Chess was able to take Phiona to countries all over the world. The game has literally changed Phiona’s life along with her family’s life as well. The money from the book and movie has provided them with what they needed to leave the slums of Katwe and establish a better life for themselves. It’s amazing how far things can take you in life if you just work hard and believe in your ability, your talent, and yourself

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Additionally the Soundtrack for this movie was pretty amazing. I am a TIDAL subscriber and was able to find and listen to the album on there. Be sure to check out Alicia Key’s song Back to Life.

Remember To Always Be

Fierce and Fabulous

xoxo Lela Victoria