Wadjda

Wadjda takes the Vancouver International Film Festival by storm.

Wadjda is a break out film for many reasons: it is the first feature film to be shot entirely on Saudi Arabian soil and the first to by a female director, but also tells a potentially controversial tale of a ten-year-old Saudi Arabian girl determined to own and ride a bicycle, something that is frowned upon for young Saudi Arabian girls. Haifaa Al Mansour weaves a lovely tale laced with humour, devotion, love, and loss, and talented young actor Waad Mohammed heads a list of brilliant performers, as the young and fiercely spirited Wadjda. This film will have you laughing one minute, crying the next. It got an extended, enthusiastic round of applause, and created quite a stir at the ballot boxes in the lobby afterward. Clearly, it is a film that rings true for many.