Movie Review of "The First Grader"
I cried the whole movie. It is for adults. There are flashbacks throughout the film about the violence of war. As difficult as it is to watch, it is a reminder that any struggle for what is right comes at a great price. We must never take freedom for granted.
The story begins with Mr. Maruge, 84, hearing on the radio that Kenya now offers free education for all. He shows up at primary school insisting on being included as a first grader. Parents and the school administrator do not want an adult in the classroom. The teacher tries to be accommodating by making him his assistant so that he can stay in the room and learn while teaching him after school.
Both Mr. Maruge and the teacher are threatened by individuals. The school administrator transfers the teacher and tries to bring in a new one, but the children revolt and lock the door. They frighten the new teacher.
Mr. Maruge goes to town and interrupts a meeting with officials. He takes off his shirt and tells about the tortures he suffered in the war camps to defend his country. His wife and child had been murdered. He pleads with them to bring back Professor Jane.
Professor Jane is brought back to the schoolchildren's delight. Mr. Maruge asks him to read a letter he has received because he does not yet know how to read well enough. She is upset when she sees it and asks the other teacher to read it to them. The letter comes from the President's Office, informing him that he is being compensated for his years as a prisoner of war. He gives his detainee number, the names of the camps and the dates. He recognizes the countless treatments he has undergone.
In the United States, we are given free education. Our children do not understand that there are countries where other children do not have what they have. While not everything is ideal in all schools, we have more than some.
Some children from other countries learn under a tree in the earth without a building. Their teachers do their best with what is given to them. If they can learn to read, they can take this knowledge home and share it with their elders.
As the soon-to-be grandmother of a Sudanese child, I hope to find a way to leave something behind her mother that other parents can tell the next generation.