Wadjda's mother works hard to look her best for her husband and to please him. A religion teacher explains that when girls have their period, they're not allowed to touch or hold the Quran. A teen student's reputation is ruined when it's clear that she rode in a car with a man who wasn't her father or brother. A construction worker whistles at Wadjda and asks her to let him "touch those little apples."
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The movie encourages independence and equal rights for girls. Wadjda's story stresses the importance of friendship between boys and girls and also of having goals and dreams. Integrity, courage, and perseverance are all major themes.
Positive Role Models
a lot
Wadjda is a persistent, determined young girl who decides to learn how to ride a bicycle, even though it's not generally accepted for girls to ride bikes. She also has her own sense of style and asserts her independence and self confidence in various ways, from the reason why she enters the Quran memorization contest to how she sells bracelets to save up for something she wants to buy. On the other hand, she does lie to her principal -- though it's to save a classmate from severe punishment.
Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Wadjda is the first Saudi Arabian movie to be directed by a woman, and it centers on a feisty, independent girl who wants to ride a bicycle, wear sneakers, and be able to compete against her best friend -- a boy in the neighborhood. The movie explores the various religious traditions and laws that many Muslim girls and women have to follow, especially when it comes to dress and submitting to men in authority. There are a few sad moments, references to girls having their period, and one incident in which a male construction worker says something lewd to a young girl, but otherwise there's no violence or strong language (except for one "damn"). An adult smokes cigarettes more and more as the movie progresses. Also, the movie is subtitled rather than dubbed, but older kids and tweens should be able to keep up with the easy-to-follow story. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
Parental Guide on IMDB.com has following to say about Sex in this film:
It is implied that Wadjda's friend Abeer was caught with another man. There are later references to her being married off.
In one scene two girls are giving each other magazines, and the head teacher Ms Hassa sees one of the girls' hands under the skirt of the other.
The religion club leader tells the girls that they shouldn't touch the Koran while having their periods.
Wadjda falls off a bike and complains that she is bleeding - someone says "What's bleeding, your virginity?"
This film gives you enough knowledge about Saudi Arabia and its fossilized views on everything, women in this country are not allowed to sing, they have to cover their faces, they do not even have the right to vote, women in Saudi Arabia are just a device for childbirth And even their value in Islamic jurisprudence is set at half a man, these are facts that no one can hide, but about the film it can be said that the acting was poor, the directing was very mediocre and the script could have been more detailed.
Warning Spoilers:
Wadjda falls off a bike and complains that she is bleeding - someone says "What's bleeding, your virginity?"
What's the Story?
WADJDA follows the titular character (Waad Mohammed), a feisty 11-year-old Saudi Arabian girl who marches to the beat of her own drum. She wears black Converse sneakers, makes friendship bracelets that she sells to classmates, and loves to compete against her (male) best friend, Abdullah (Abdullrahman Al Gohani). When she sees him riding a bicycle, Wadjda decides that she, too, needs a bike, even though it's considered unacceptable for girls to ride. Wadjda's parents refuse to indulge her, so the entrepreneurial girl joins her school's religion club to compete in a Quran memorization competition that awards the winner just enough to purchase the bike.
The first Saudi Arabian-produced film ever to be directed by a woman, Haifaa Al-Mansour, is a triumph of nuance and substance. Enterprising young Wadjda -- with her love of Western radio, quirky Chucks with purple laces, and singular decision to beat Abdullah in a bike race -- is a study in everyday female empowerment. When her mother informs her that her father's family tree can never include her, because it only features men's names, she boldly writes "Wadjda" on a sticky note and tacks it on to the painting. The moment is both touching and a loaded statement -- her father's "glorious" legacy will never claim her.
Wadjda knows what her future holds. She must marry (one of her more pious classmates is already a wife) and bear her husband's sons -- something that her own beautiful mother was unable to do. But that's another story, because Wadjda is about independent thinking, overcoming odds, and unconditional friendship. Abdullah and Wadjda don't create a fictional world like Terabithia, but in their own way, they talk and play and compete like equals -- something just as secret and magical (and dangerous), given their homeland.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the importance of using media to explore other cultures and what growing up in other places is like. What does Wadjda teach us about Saudi Arabia?
Do you think it's obvious that the movie was directed by a woman? What do you think she's trying to say about Saudi society?
Does this movie make you want to see more foreign films? Why or why not?
MPAA explanation:
thematic elements, brief mild language and smoking
Last updated:
October 8, 2022
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By Sandie Angulo Chen
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