There are times you watch a story unfold that is far from the reality of your own, and yet, in the process of being consumed by it, you understand that by virtue of your existence you take part. We are all implicit, somehow, in the crime of being human.
The acclaimed 2013 Nigerian drama B is for Boy is one of those stories. It chronicles the last trimester of pregnant Amaka as she deals with the realities and consequences of a community that places preeminence on male heirs and the production thereof. In one scene, a friend tells Nonso, her husband: "A son is important in every family, to carry on the family name, to have a say in things, to inherit."
It is a modern tale, but not a new one. In refusing to spare the characters their sins and shortcomings, the movie also refuses to spare us, its audience and the world at large. The plight of women, from many backgrounds and standings in the community, plays out in front of us, and there are moments where it is understood how we have all gone along with things in our own lives that are outmoded at best and cowardly at worst. The cinematography is simple and the camera hand-held but the story is poignant. Apart from a poetic brilliance, the themes it brings in are important ones, applicable to all genders and walks of life.