Beasts of No Nation (2015)

Beasts of No Nation is a 2015 American war drama film written, shot, and directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga, about a young boy who survives as his country goes through a horrific war. The film, based on the 2005 novel of the same name by Uzodinma Iweala, was shot in Ghana, and stars Idris Elba, Ama K. Abebrese, Abraham Attah, Grace Nortey, David Dontoh, and Opeyemi Fagbohungbe.

It was screened in the main competition section of the 72nd Venice International Film Festival, where it won the Marcello Mastroianni Award.

The film was shown in the Special Presentations section of the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival, and released on Netflix globally and in a limited release by Bleecker Street on October 16, 2015.

Synopsis

With war approaching their small West African village, the mother, sister, and baby brother of the principal character, Agu, a preadolescent boy, leave for the capital, but Agu and his father, older brother, and grandfather stay behind. All the men in the family are shot dead by the army except Agu, who flees to the bush. He is soon found there by a battalion of the rebel Native Defense Force, which first threatens to kill him, but coerces him to join them as a child soldier.

Actors