He Named Me Malala, well crafted film with details you think you know

He Named Me Malala is the story of Malala, the young girl that was shot by the Taliban for speaking out about the rights of girls to go to school. That is the story that the public knows-and every bit of that is true. In the documentary He Named Me Malala, airing commercial free on National Geographic Channel,  Monday, February 29 at 8PM ET we learn the details about her life prior to the attack, her recovery, home life and her desire to get every girl (in the world) into the class room.

This documentary is can’t-turn-away gripping. Part of that is accomplished by the content of the story, in addition to the way that the film was created.

In the film He Named Me Malala uses a variety of timelines and techniques to engage views of any knowledge level and make them interested in the story. There are animation elements done using a very muted and subdued technique that comes across like a flip chart that was filmed. These segments introduce the film and help establish some of the back stories, like when Ziauddin Yousafzai (her father) was a teacher and started his own school.

My ideals of being a dad have certainly changed over time. Granted, I want our children to have elements of my personality, but I sure don’t want them to be carbon copies. It makes sense that Malala took such a keen interest in education give that it’s what her father did. Even when you watch the film you can see that Ziauddin is a gentle soul with seemingly endless supplies of forgiveness, something that obviously were taken on by his daughter.

He didn’t intentionally create an internationally inspiring girl for education-and it discusses that in the film. He was just being a good dad. Walking the walk and talking the talk. Books like All In and even the mere fact that fathers are not taking their parental leave in the news is a step in the right direction.

Zia is just one dad, just as his daughter, Malala is just one daughter. Imagine if more fathers had as influential a role in their child’s lives as he is with his daughter. I certainly think that this trend can change for the better. Fathers don’t have to be Super Dad; they just have to be a good dad.  Another helpful thing is to stop blaming yourself for any short comings or things that you think you could’ve done better as a parent.

After the attack he blamed himself, running through the situation over and over, wondering how he could let a 15 year old openly defy the Taliban in public. Ziauddin plays a major part in the film. From its title one would think that it was his film and to an extent it is. As a dad I’ve thought about him prior to watching this. How angry would I be if zealots tried to assassinate my child? It’s tough to say what I would’ve done or thought in his situation because the events that led up to that day were utterly unique for a number of reasons.

That’s the beauty of the He Named Me Malala. It starts out showing her goof around at her home in England, interviews her brothers and shows her going to school-trying to navigate the already tricky landscape of being a teenager. She’s just a normal teenager.  She’s also doing all of that while giving speeches to the U.N., visiting refugees and schools in Kenya.

Using photos from Malala’s home in Pakistan’s Swat Valley, audio recordings from the mullahs who took control-and then terrorized the region; viewers get as close as anyone would want to that time and location. By Malala’s recalling that time, the mullahs started out kind and often mentioned women in a positive light in their prayers. However, the Taliban then started killing police officers, bombing places they disagreed with, held public burnings of western entertainment and told girls that they couldn’t go to school anymore.

It was here where things turned into war, her father was directly mentioned in the prayers (which was a threat) and where schools across that area were bombed in the middle of the night.

He Named Me Malala manages to be a documentary and experience at the same time. It’s fabulously well done and educational as a film, yet one wishes that it never happened in the first place. To that end Malala started campaign #WithMalala that highlights the disparity is education where 60 million girls are not getting an education. If you want to help out, just tweet that out and through 3/10 $1 will be donated to the Malala Fund to help them accomplish that.

Stand #withMalala and her father, @ZiauddinY for girls' education. Tune in to #HeNamedMeMalala on Monday 8/7c. pic.twitter.com/arIDlxzV7B

— Nat Geo Channel (@NatGeoChannel) February 26, 2016

He Named Me Malala is from the Director of Waiting For Superman and An Inconvenient Truth, Davis Guggenheim.  It’s rated PG-13 for brief bloody elements, disturbing images and verbal threats.  The film airs commercial free on Monday, February 29 at 8PM ET on National Geographic Channel.