gradyharp

(2013-05-24 13:52:38)

Overcoming Obstacles

DESERT FLOWER is a very powerful film that introduces many viewers tothe atrocities of Female Genital Mutilation, defined by the dictionaryas 'FGM, also known as female genital cutting and female circumcision,is defined as all procedures that involve partial or total removal ofthe external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genitalorgans for non- medical reasons. FGM is typically carried out on girlsfrom a few days old to puberty. It may take place in a hospital, but isusually performed, without anesthesia, by a traditional circumciserusing a knife, razor, or scissors.' Though that is not the main driverof this story it certainly makes the life of Waris Dirie who wrote thisautobiography recognized as someone who overcame insurmountable odds tobecome one the world's top models and a speaker for women's rights.Liya Kebede stars as Waris Darie and is the perfect choice of anactress to fill this role: she is an International supermodel, actressand philanthropist, born and raised in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. In 2003,she was the first woman of color to become the face of EstГѓВ©e Laudercosmetics.Waris Dirie (Liya Kebede) was born in Somalia and was subjected to FGMand fled across the desert to freedom form the heinous attitude towardwomen (Waris as a child is beautifully portrayed by Soraya Omar-Scego).She struggles though dreary jobs, eventually hooks up with Marilyn(Sally Hawkins0 who introduces her to the world of fashion via TerryDonaldson (Timothy Spall), learns how to dress and walk in heels andeventually becomes the great model we know us as today. She has loveinterests (Anthony Mackie) but her aim is to gain enough credibilityand money to go before the WHO and speak against the mutilation thatexists in many countries to this day.Directed by Sherry Horman who adapted Dirie's autobiography for thescreen with Smita Bhide, the visuals are spectacular and the manner inwhich the story is related is full of passion and compassion. Theentire cast (including Juliet Stevenson, Meera Syal, and CraigParkinson) is pitch perfect. But it is Liya Kebede who fills the screennot only with her beauty but also with a powerful performance of themain character. A very fine film with a heavy message. Grady Harp

Megan

(2013-05-23 19:04:10)

Desert Flower a must see

I loved the movie so much I saw it twice in one week and would see it again. It has a significant message that draws forth much compassion for young girls forced to be circumcised

(2013-05-23 02:06:31)

Moving and Powerful Story

A moving & powerful story of perseverance & courage. Despite centuries-old tradition, young Waris refuses marriage to a much older man. She makes the arduous journey alone, through the desert to her grandmother in Mogadishu. Civil war in Somalia leads her to London. While living with diplomatic relatives, she is a maid - treated with disdain. Diplomatic relations b/w the UK & Somalia end. Waris is left in London, alone, destitute, without a good grasp of the language. She learns how to live on the streets. Eventually she befriends Marilyn; later the photographer, Terry Donaldson. Her life now moves upward, in fairytale fashion. She becomes an international supermodel. She uses her fame to bring worldwide attention to female mutilation for the first time, eventually becoming the UN spokesperson for this cause.The film also calls attention to adversities women in Waris' culture face daily. Her mother is beaten by her father for letting Waris leave before her wedding. Yet, she lets Waris go because she knows it gives her daughter a chance for a better life. When Waris tells the story of her "circumcision", the wide-angle scene shot and narration are particularly poignant. Her mother had to return to home to care for her other children, leaving toddler Waris alone in the wild. Part of this may have been exaggerated for the screen but can women in the West even conceive of having to make decisions like that??Liya Kebede gives a great performance as adult Waris. She projects Waris' innocence and indomitable spirit. Fine performances from Soraya Omar-Scego as young Waris, and Sally Hawkins as Marilyn. Excellent cinematography captures grand landscapes of Africa & London, and more intimate portrait shots.This film inspires due to the perseverance of its title character and the courage of the women she represents. It also opens our eyes to much larger global issues. Well worth watching, at least once if not several times.

(2013-05-22 15:51:50)

Desert Flower

I saw the trailer for this film and was intrigued. A very difficult theme, but a great story line. Not to be watched for the faint hearted(there are some fairly graphic scenes). Informative as to what is going on in parts of the world. I had no idea that this practice is as wide spread as it is.

(2013-05-21 20:36:48)

Desert Flower- Excellent rating would be far more appropriate here than "I love it"

This review is from: Desert Flower (DVD) I ordered this film as I had recently seen it on tv, found it to be excellent in its depiction of the most extreme form of violence against females, and as children. A film I wanted to utilize in an Anger Management Group I have been facilitating in any number of venus - from an all male setting, to juveniles, to co-ed groups in the context of outpatient clinics in a number of communities besieged with addiction as well as mental health issues. In my current group, I am working with court-referred men, some of whom have managed to have their attorneys convince judges that his or her client need not be remanded to a 38 week domestic violence group, but would be fine with an Anger Management Group.....

(2013-05-21 16:10:59)

I've never been so glad to be born in the US!

This movie profiles the life of model Waris Dirie. She was born in Somalia and lived a nomadic life in the desert. The custom over there is to mutilate a girl's genitalia at an early age to make them "pure". Many of the girls (including her sister) don't even survive this assault due to hemorrhage or infection.Her mother tried to marry her off (as a 4th wife) to an old man when she was only 13. She escaped her village and managed to get a job at the Somali Embassy in London, where some wealthy relatives lived. After the war broke out in Somalia, the embassy closed. She didn't want to go back so she lived on the streets as an illegal while working at a McDonalds.It was there that she was discovered by famous photographer Terence Donovan in the mid 80s. She goes on to became a successful model but the real story is about her crusade to help end female circumcision. She eventually quit her career to become a UN Ambassador to help end this barbaric practice. This movie definitely made an impact on me and I'm glad I'm a US citizen!

(2013-05-21 18:02:14)

Great movie!!!!!!

I watched this movie online on youtube b/c it was a foreign movie and not released yet in the USA and I read the book. It was awesome!! It will probably be removed off youtube soon b/c its coming to the USA. It was all in english and was released in germany and britian I think in 2009. Anyways it was a really good movie that everyone should watch so they can understand how other cultures treat their woman. This movie was crazy! I loved it!! Watch this movie and you will see. I don't want to tell about the movie b/c it would ruin it. I suggest youu pre-order this movie. Im going to get it too!!

elsiclawsonjr

(2013-05-21 09:31:11)

Every Parents Need To Know This

"Desert Flower" is based on the life of Waris Dirie (Liya Kebede) whowas born into a Somalian desert tribe, then ran away from an arrangedmarriage as a young teen and made her way to London, where she became aworld-famous supermodel. As a child, she was circumcised, as is thecustom in many African countries. An old woman in the desert cut awaythose parts that could someday allow her to feel sexual pleasure.When Waris was sold as a young teenager to an old man who already hadthree wives, she simply left one day, walking hundreds of miles acrossdesert and scrub land to seek her grandmother in Mogadishu. Amazingly,she found her — and was hired by an aunt in London to work as a maid.The film cuts between her experiences as a young girl and what happenedin London, where she ran away, lived on the streets and were befriendedby a ditz shop girl named Marylin (Sally Hawkins).It is while sweeping floors and cleaning slop at a McDonalds that she'sspotted by fashion photographer Terry Donaldson (Timoty Spell).Donaldson saw something in the bone structure of the cleaning lady thatconvinced him to give her his card. Waris was all worried trying to bemodel, but thankfully Marylin knows her fashion and persuades her,several months later, to pop round and see him. She's soon on her way."Desert Flower" is an important movie, and a great one for all Africanwomen to see. Dirie's life-story is inspiring for me, her experiencesas young girl are tragic, and her ability to speak out against a customthat has long been hidden is impressive. The film certainly has animportant message. The scenes that will remain in the memory long afterthe film concludes are those dealing with Waris' circumcision,particularly an excruciating sequence in which I watch her three yearold face as the procedure is performed. It's an angry, damningindictment of a barbaric process. Which I wish it will stop.

(2013-05-20 11:23:25)

Inspiring documentary

This review is from: Desert Flower (DVD) Something every woman should see, regardless of your religion. Keep a box of tissues at the ready. Something you will never forget

M De Storm

(2013-05-19 15:12:59)

Thought provokingly splendid

When a friend of mine suggested watching "Desert Flower", immediatelymy thought was of a Romantic Comedy of sorts. It was not thought of asa Drama or a Comedy, nor was it ever thought of as anything like thefilm that we sat down to view.The story revolves around that of Warris (Liya Kebede) who, from thesandy deserts of Somalia, arrives in England. Mixed with the short miniflashbacks of Warris's life before coming to the UK, they show theeventual story and reasons surrounding her presence. With little leftto the imagination for the viewer, Desert Flower leaves nothing shortof a very educational story of a Somali woman coping with the taboosubject of female circumcising.As this truly is an autobiographical journey of Warris Dirie, manypeople will find that much of the film is filled with emphasis on abuse– and that is the term that I would use in all manner of the word andexpression – as the depiction of the young woman's life is put throughsheer hell. With the help of her friends, however, Marylin and Terry,the journey becomes possibly less raw and more tolerable for living asnormal as anyone who has witnessed all that Warris has.Desert Rose is absolutely riveting viewing for those who find theirTrue Stories more appealing than Fiction and Fantasy, of which there isnone of that within the scenes of this movie. We believe that maybe"Desert Flower" has broken ground in every possible place concerningthe subject matter that it exposes the viewer to, not to mention awardwinning for the strength, fight and progress in the approach to theUnited Nations concerning the inhuman suffering that other countrywomen like Warris have and are still going through.Timothy Spall playing his top modelling photography character acts outhis parts with excellence, as does the sometimes hard faced Lucinda whois played by Juliet Stevenson. Combining the world of fashion and reallife together, the overall and sometimes harrowing parts of a torturedlife brings the viewer ever closer to the point where they will shout,cringe or even remark loudly on such treatment that Warris goes throughfrom a young age. If the viewer can get past the point of her SomaliaCulture Tradition of young girls, then what they will find is a welcomesigh of relief as to the outcome.DVD Archive Rating: 10/10 (Top marks for a truly great directed factualbased film)

(2013-05-19 03:22:02)

Overcoming Obstacles

DESERT FLOWER is a very powerful film that introduces many viewers to the atrocities of Female Genital Mutilation, defined by the dictionary as 'FGM, also known as female genital cutting and female circumcision, is defined as all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. FGM is typically carried out on girls from a few days old to puberty. It may take place in a hospital, but is usually performed, without anesthesia, by a traditional circumciser using a knife, razor, or scissors.' Though that is not the main driver of this story it certainly makes the life of Waris Dirie who wrote this autobiography recognized as someone who overcame insurmountable odds to become one the world's top models and a speaker for women's rights.Liya Kebede stars as Waris Darie and is the perfect choice of an actress to fill this role: she is an International supermodel, actress and philanthropist, born and raised in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. In 2003, she was the first woman of color to become the face of EstГѓВ©e Lauder cosmetics.Waris Dirie (Liya Kebede) was born in Somalia and was subjected to FGM and fled across the desert to freedom form the heinous attitude toward women (Waris as a child is beautifully portrayed by Soraya Omar-Scego). She struggles though dreary jobs, eventually hooks up with Marilyn (Sally Hawkins0 who introduces her to the world of fashion via Terry Donaldson (Timothy Spall), learns how to dress and walk in heels and eventually becomes the great model we know us as today. She has love interests (Anthony Mackie) but her aim is to gain enough credibility and money to go before the WHO and speak aginst the mutilation that exists in many countries to this day.Directed by Sherry Horman who adapted Dirie's autobiography for the screen with Smita Bhide, the visuals are spectacular and the manner in which the story is related is full of passion and compassion. The entire cast (including Juliet Stevenson, Meera Syal, and Craig Parkinson) is pitch perfect. But it is Liya Kebede who fills the screen not only with her beauty but also with a powerful performance of the main character. A very fine film with a heavy message. Grady Harp, March 12

(2013-05-18 12:51:39)

On its way...

This review is from: Desert Flower (DVD) I can't really tell if the DVD I just bought is OK or not!You couldn't send it to Mexico and the product is still in CA.

(2013-05-18 11:36:38)

Desert flower

Read the book...the DVD was a bit confusing and not well developed. One was left asking questions about certain aspects. If I had not read the book, the movie would not have made quite as much sense.

(2013-05-17 20:24:18)

Courage

First, I commend National Geographic for it's active role in distributing a probably money losing movie that has as it's core storyline a topic that is uncomfortable to discuss and even more difficult to rectify. Second, the practice is extremely common affecting the majority of females throughout western and eastern northern equatorial Africa; parts of the Middle East and to a much smaller extent the rest of the world. Third, through political, economic and educational empowerment for females the practice is beginning to decline - slowly, gradually.The story of Waris Dirie whether correctly embellished or not is still remarkable, however the core storyline is circumcision (mutilation) and sparking that first step - discussion, is this movie.

(2013-05-12 23:48:43)

A True Insight To A Young Girl's Journey Through Life

This review is from: Desert Flower (DVD) I have read all of the Waris Dirie books. Her first, Desert Flower, had me enthralled, emotional and amazed that young girls are mutilated in this tragic manner, then and now. Waris is a strong willed young girl who refuses to enter into an arranged marriage with a man 40-50 years older than her and so runs away from her nomad family in the dark of night across the harsh desserts of the Sudan. She finally makes it to her Grandmother's home in Mogadishu who then sends her to work in the Sudanese London Embassy as a house maid. The Revolution happens and the Embassy closes leaving Waris with nobody to care for her, no grasp of the English language and no money but still with her cherished passport. She befriends a shop assistant who reluctantly offers her a place to stay, temporarily ! They become best friends and as her true internal and external beauty becomes evident she is discovered by a fashion photographer and despite several hurdles, fame, fortune and recognition are hers. Waris now uses that recognition to make the world aware of the mutilation that still occurs today, all over the world, in the name of religion and to keep girls and women objects that men own. The movie is a close adaptation of the book, and as I watched the same emotions washed over me and tears rolled down my face. I thoroughly recommend you read the book, watch the movie and then read the other two books that follow Desert Flower. We should all do whatever we can to support the abolition of the barbaric practice of female genital mutilation.

(2013-05-12 13:49:46)

DESERT FLOWER

This review is from: Desert Flower [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray) This was a very informative film. I wish that they would have done it in real time instead of flashbacks of her childhood. How ever they film is quite interesting and the film is beautifully shot. I just wanted more story, so I'll have to read the book. It is truly worth the watch.

(2013-05-10 23:18:08)

Desert Flower

The movie is about the life story of a girl who was borned in the poorest regions of one of the poorest countries in Africa, and who eventually becomes a top model. How many times do you see that happen?That is an amazing story in itself, but there is an educational and disturbing element to this movie. It is the practice of mutilating female genitalia of girls at a very young age as part of their customs. It really is very sad to see a practice like that going on as we speak.Yes, I do recommend this movie, but it is not jovial, and it may be disturbing to some people.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU

(2013-05-10 11:46:38)

A universal crime against humanity

An emotional trip of a woman from the desert of Somalia to the UnitedNations. I will not follow that road which is detailed and marked byexploitation, scarification, mutilation, alienation, rejection, and allother words in that line rhyming with immigration. The film is dealingwith one day in the life of an Africa woman that changed that very lifeinto an ordeal. It is called excision and it is performed at the age ofthree. Beside the direct death rate, and even the indirect death rate(later when pregnant and wanting to deliver the baby) those whosurvived are made psychologically inferior and dependent. They are notable to control their lives and to develop the energies that wouldtransform the whole African continent. A tradition coming from BlackAfrica that was later integrated by Islam when it arrived, though Islamwas careful not to spread the practice in the population that did nothave that tradition, particularly the Arabs. It is nothing but thesurvival of an enslaving sexual practice that has to disappear fromthis earth as fast as possible. Yet we are far from it. Excision, and Iwill say like all other sexual mutilation, is a crime against humanity,including in the US where 95 per cent of males are circumcised. Theyhave even invented a word for natural: uncircumcised and uncut, whichis the barbaric bigotry of some turned into lexical tyranny.Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne, UniversityParis 8 Saint Denis, University Paris 12 CrГѓВ©teil, CEGID

(2013-05-09 01:46:11)

FGM...

In UN Waris said... In our country we have a proverb "The last camel in the line walks as quickly as the first. What ever happens to the least of us has an effect on all of us."Some 150 million women and girls as young as three year old around the world have experienced the procedure called Female genital mutilation (FGM)plus some 8,000 more a day, every single day. Waris Dirie is the chosen one to speak for all those who can not speak about FGM. How Waris survived an unbelievable punishment and journey to get where she is and proudly speak as a woman, is nothing short of magical. Wish Waris health and happiness. Bravo, bravo, bravo.

(2013-05-08 19:17:07)

love, truth, reality

This review is from: Desert Flower (DVD) Beautiful true story of struggle and remption. Thought provoking about events around the world that need to be given the proper attention and care. Wonderful story attesting to the power of genuine, honest relationships that cross all boundaries.