3 Years After Its Release, Queen Of Katwe Is Still My Favourite Sports Film
With QoK, Mira Nair Encourages Children To “Play Like A Girl!”
When Hollywood teams up with big names for making a film on the sports genre, the expectations are pretty much met by default. We have all enjoyed “Cool Runnings” and “Million Dollar Arm,” where an underdog goes on to become a prodigy giving us a vicarious sense of accomplishment. So how is Disney’s “Queen Of Katwe” directed by Mira Nair any different? Oh, let me tell you, three years since I watched QoK, I don’t think I have enjoyed watching any sports film this way! So yes, Mira Nair’s Queen of Katwe is every bit different and I’m going to tell you why.
For starters, this is a story about a girl. Not about the coach, but A GIRL! Phiona Mutesi.
In a manmade world devoid of female idols, this film from Hollywood — an industry known for its lopsided representation — is a breath of fresh air. I strongly believe that such a remarkable story of a female can only be told by another. Having lived in Uganda for more than 25 years, Mira Nair has won us over with her profound cultural sensitivity. She has carefully balanced the contribution of the male coach (Robert Katende), by not making Phiona’s achievements about him, which is how every film handles priority. Nair’s coach urges his “pioneers” to play like a girl! Robert is shown to be so proud of Phiona even when she defeats him; he concludes he is not enough of a coach to her. The ever so brilliant David Oyelowo who plays Robert doesn’t step over Phiona’s triumph in any manner. Nair goes a step further by giving Robert’s wife, Sara her rightful due and therefore making the possible male savior syndrome moot. Having said that, there is no “white savior syndrome” in the film either and what a relief it is. I suspect if such intricacies would have been carefully crafted in, if not for the female gaze. But please go ahead and prove me wrong.
The film does not subdue Phiona’s genius “despite being a poor girl”
The film puts across the rampant classism within races and ethnic groups. No matter where we are, or how “third world” our country is, people always find ways to oppress someone based on sex or class or both. This underdog from Katwe had to struggle quite a bit before being taken seriously. And true to the quote at the beginning of the trailer: “The size of your dreams must always exceed your current capacity to achieve them,” the film is a bag of endless dreams one can achieve in their lives, despite barriers.
When Phiona wins her first match against a male champion, Godfrey Gali says: “Phiona has a very aggressive plan. She surrounds you until you have nowhere to go and then she will squeeze you like a python until you are dead”. This is the most fitting description of her aspiration to become the champion! This aspect of raging sportsmanship is addressed very eloquently when the coach gives the children a pep talk before their first match with the “city boys.” The analogy of dogs and cats is a lesson not just for the kids. The exposure to the huge beautifully leveled playgrounds and its impact on the children is perhaps the most powerful shots in the film. When the singing children gasp and are stifled momentarily, sitting in their dilapidated ‘ministry of sports’ vehicle we see how ripped apart their lives are, on the other side of the slum. But later that night when they are all seen boycotting the cushioned beds and lying on the floor huddled together, the kids have won our hearts already.
Madina who played Phiona embodied Phiona
The actor who played Phiona, Madina Nalwanga, who herself grew up in the slum has played her role with a bittersweet elegance. Through this endearing effort at Neorealism, Madina has played Phiona with a believable performance and stunning attention to detail. The slum of Katwe has not been exoticised or antagonized — so the focus is always on Phiona, but with elements of Katwe attached to her; not the other way around. When coach Robert asks her “Sometimes the place you’re used to, is not the place you belong, you belong where you believe you belong, where is that for you?,” I could not help but notice a collective sigh and some teary cheeks. That is the crucial moment in the film when Madina stunned me.
Queen of Katwe promulgates another valuable lesson to women, especially: to shoulder failure and not be bogged down by it. A lesson that failure is not an impediment but just a minor setback is gratifying, and life-affirming. For somebody like Phiona, to have gone so far to attend an international championship, failing was not an option. But she picked it up from the place she faltered and eventually nurtured her dream.
A mention of the champion’s mother (and not the umm… father, or any man)
There can be no text written about the Queen of Katwe, without the mention of the exhilarating performance of Lupita Nyong’o. The Academy award-winning Kenyan-Mexican actor is a charmer. Be it her convincing local tongue with the occasional “heyyyy” thrown in, or her tailor-made “walk,” she radiates Africa with sincerity. Lupita plays Nakku Harriet, Phiona’s and four other children’s mother (one of whom is dead). Being so young herself and at the cusp of extreme poverty, Harriet pulls the family together with her courage and conviction. A rather beautiful shot where she is about to sell her traditional clothes so she could let Phiona study through the night, we see that she uses Phiona’s trophy to check herself — and that is a Mira Nair masterstroke. Harriet is quite afraid of dreaming big and is afraid of not being able to live the life of her dreams. In a way, Phiona is her antithesis because it is her dream that pulls her and her whole family out of poverty. Lupita’s performance as Harriet has made Phiona’s success so well deserving and their newfound life so satisfying.
Queen Of Katwe Is An Ageless Film
Queen of Katwe is a film sans every superficial third world despair that directors sometimes stand behind. It is a story of a champion from Uganda (I love how they never use the word “hero” in the film). A story of a girl, who against all odds stood her ground and gave little girls an idol to look up to. A heartfelt mention to the children who played Benjamin, Ivan, Joseph, and Gloria so beautifully, they must be so proud. And like me, if you are a fan of African music, you will catch yourself humming “bring the flavor to the fish, bring the flavor to the rice” for days!
Finally, the resolute reason why I think QoK is the best sports film ever made is for this tiny, profound line by Gloria, “in Chess, the small one can become the big one!” *Goosebumps!*
