Every character believes that their actions are absolutely necessary for their survival,” these are the words of Director Judy Kibinge as she explains the title of her new film, “Something Necessary”. Set in Nakuru, the 85-minute-long screenplay is a story of forgiveness and redemption inspired by the 2007/8 post-election violence. Opening with bone-chilling footage from that dark period, it somberly cuts to a hospital scene where the audience sees the world from the perspective of the bedridden Anne.

Played by Susan Wanjiru (31), Anne is recuperating in the hospital after a vicious attack in her home that left her raped and injured, her husband murdered and her son put in a coma. Anne struggles to piece her life together and restore the family farm dubbed “The Haven”. The film also follows Joseph (David Kiprotich Mutai), a soft-spoken young man who is having second thoughts about his actions—he’d been among the gang that attacked Anne’s home. “Something Necessary” tells an important story. Echoing back to a terrible time in Kenya’s “Something Necessary” launched on January 24th at Century Cinemax, The Junction.

The world premiere was set for January 28th at Bright Future Section, Rotterdam Film Festival. For more details, visit www.gingerink.tv. history, it manages to touch on a variety of issues including tribalism, poverty, injustice, sexism and most importantly, forgiveness. Despite it’s social relevance and definite highlights, the movie struggles in some areas. While the acting was good, the dialogue felt too thin overall and led to clumsy transitions between scenes, for instance, the exchanges between Anne and Kitur (her son) or with her friend Chebet. Certain issues remained unresolved, one being that the gang is not brought to justice and even though we empathize with Anne’s plight, the plot plateaus in the middle of the Second Act causing her dilemmas to feel protracted.

These minor drawbacks aside “Something Necessary” is an inspirational movie worth watching. Anne’s strength and determination to rebuild her home could be seen as symbolic of how the nation has tried to heal itself after the events of 2007/8. “I’ve always seen Anne as a personification of the journey the country has gone on,” says Director Kibinge. The production quality was superb thanks to a partnership with Ginger Ink Productions, who previously worked on the internationally-acclaimed Nairobi Half Life.