When I first saw the trailer for Beasts of No Nation a few months ago I thought that it looked phenomenal and I was surprised to see that it was a Netflix original. The final product lived up to my standards and really showed me what Netflix was capable of when it comes to original content. Not only is Beasts of no Nation a good movie, but also an important one. It really sheds light on the terrors of children being turned into soldiers and growing up in such harsh surroundings.

Beasts of no Nation does a great job setting the main character, Agu, up by starting out with him being like most kids with a strong imagination and a sharp mind, but then comes the slow decline of Agu becoming a soldier who doesn’t find killing out of the ordinary. Every child actor in this movie has an insane amount of talent and potential. Idris Elba also brought an amazing performance as usual and his character was perhaps the most interesting. Some of his motives are good but it’s the way that he carries them out that is the problem. In a way he even takes over the father role for Agu.

The movie is also very beautiful and the costume design was great. Most of the movie took place outdoors in green and lush surroundings. Beasts of no Nation was also very raw and didn’t mind showing the darkest sided of human beings. I never felt like I was watching a movie, it just seemed like I was looking into someone’s life. Everything from the sets to the performances felt real. If you haven’t seen Beasts of no Nation and have Netflix you should definitely watch it no matter what genre of movies you like. There is also a book if you would be interested in that.

Thanks for reading.