The Woman King

West Africa, 1823: Enough is enough! After her family has tried several times in vain to get the stubborn Nawi ( Thuso Mbedu ) somehow to the man, her father decides to give her to the Agojie. This is an elite force led by Nancisca ( Viola Davis ), in the service of Ghezo ( John Boyega ), the King of Dahomey, and made up entirely of women. Many grisly legends surround the troupe. Many of which are not true. The training is still tough, as Nawi soon finds out, she repeatedly attracts attention there with her rebellious nature. Fortunately for her, there is also the experienced fighter Izogie ( Lashana Lynch), who becomes a kind of mentor for her. They can use their offspring anyway, as the conflict between Dahomey and the rival kingdom of Oyo is coming to a head…

The time of publication for The Woman King is certainly not badly chosen. There’s about a month to go before Black Panther: Wakanda Forever hits theaters, the sequel to Black Panther that became a cultural phenomenon in 2018. So it’s only fair that the story of the African elite troupe Aojie also comes to the big screen. After all, this was in the West African kingdom of Dahomey from the 17th century to the early 20th-century active female fighter unit a major inspiration from the underlying Marvel comics. Like its adaptation a few years ago, blacks are allowed to take their destiny into their own hands and do not have to rely on white heroes to save them. The latter cannot be seen far and wide here.

Wherein The Woman King the topic of skin color is only addressed sporadically anyway. Even if the harmful influence of the white invaders is discussed, for example when it comes to the slaves, the film is not limited to a purely black-and-white war. There is more than enough conflict even without the Europeans. A central one exists between the two kingdoms of Dahomey and Oyo. The rebellion against violent occupiers does not refer to colonists here, but to other African peoples. And even within them, disputes are not uncommon. There’s intrigue at court, and there’s a rough tone in the training of the Agojies, reminiscent of typical military films. And then there are the arguments that go back to gender roles or the fight against a patriarchal system.