'First Grader' teaches beauty of education

"THE FIRST GRADER" — ★★1/2; Oliver Musila Litondo, Naomie Harris; PG-13 (violence, scenes of torture); Broadway

"The First Grader" is a film with its heart in the right place that touches viewers' hearts as well, but the film never quite blossoms into the great one it constantly feels like it is about to become.

When Kenya announced in 1993 that it would offer free primary education to all, nobody thought it would include any of the country's oldest citizens. But the true story of Maruge, wonderfully played by Oliver Musila Litondo, a man in his 80s who wants to sit in a classroom with young children so he can learn how to read, defied everybody's expectations.

With plenty of resistance coming from the community, including school administrators, parents and even government officials, all thinking it inappropriate for such an old man to take up space in a classroom intended for children, Maruge shows tenacity and perseverance in his quest to learn to read. He finds support from his teacher, Jane Obincho (Naomie Harris), and together they take on the struggle to teach and learn.

Maruge also forms friendships with his classmates, occasionally with great tenderness shown through the eyes of an old man who has witnessed things beyond the comprehension of any of the students and most of the adults in the region. He grew up at a time of civil unrest, when his nation struggled to gain its independence from colonial England in a little-spoken of but violent history.

Litondo and Harris both deliver strong performances as authentic Kenyan characters, and the film avoids the many cliches of so many African stories. The story is about people, not just Maruge, and director Justin Chadwick does a wonderful job of showcasing the many beautiful people who make up the community. It is a breath of fresh air not to have a film populated with Hollywood's ideas of beauty, but real faces with real character. And while there are strong emotional moments, it feels like the National Geographic production doesn't quite manage to shed its educational mission and invest completely in its dramatic goals.

It engages part of the time but can't quite embrace the audience in its slightly too long two-hour running time. It does convey strong messages about the importance of education and tackles women's issues in Africa that are applicable in any contemporary society, but for viewers, the film feels slightly too much like school. That isn't to say it doesn't have a lot to offer, but somehow it never manages to be quite as good as it seems it should. However, a film with such strong themes can be forgiven some of its flaws for having its heart in the right place.

"The First Grader" is rated PG-13 for violence, including scenes of torture (while occasionally brutal, the scenes aren't exploitive); running time: 103 minutes.

LC@Desnews.com, Twitter: MrLDC