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A Walk to Beautiful (2008)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:19
Fresh:17
Rotten:2
Average Rating:7.4/10
Theatrical Release:Feb 8, 2008 Limited
Synopsis: A Walk to Beautiful tells the stories of five Ethiopian women who suffer from devastating childbirth injuries and make the journey to reclaim their lost dignity. Rejected by their husbands and... [More]
Director: Mary Olive Smith, Amy Bucher
Reviews for A Walk to Beautiful
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 5/5 |
Five young Ethiopian women doomed to social ostracism and physical misery because of 'obstetric fistulas' walk miles to get treatment and reclaim their lives, and in doing so, march straight into our hearts. Full Review |
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8/10 |
... a beautiful and uplifting film...[and] Ethiopia has never appeared more beautiful than in this film's cinematography by Smith, Tony Hardmon and Jerry Risius. Full Review |
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 5/10 |
A most righteous cause, but one has to wonder if this is a documentary film, or an infomercial for the subject hospital Full Review |
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4/5 |
Will leave you speechless two times over -- first with despair, then with joy. Full Review |
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The filmmakers' restraint is admirable in this era of overheated editorializing. Full Review |
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10/10 |
This is the real life that young African natives face, emotionally told by 5 young women, devastated and isolated by obstetric fistula, and their hopeful search for a cure. Full Review |
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3/4 |
[Director Mary Olive] Smith makes no pretense of keeping a dispassionate distance from her subject: Her film is an unabashed call to action that shines a spotlight on a problem whose intimate medical nature relegated it to the shadows. Full Review |
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5/5 |
A complex and quietly devastating indictment of chauvinist societies that see women as lovers, mothers and servants, and treat anyone who can’t fulfill those roles as a nonperson.
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At times, it becomes reminiscent of the well-meaning but racist documentaries of the distant past and suffers from an unintentionally patronizing Nanook of the North syndrome. Full Review |
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B+ |
Walk to Beautiful is a tender, evocative documentary...not an enraged film, it's one of optimism and education. Full Review |
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3/5 |
It is difficult not to be moved by the women's medical progress. Full Review |
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3/5 |
An enlightening documentary about a serious problem in Ethiopia suffered by poor women who have had obstructed pregnancies. Full Review |
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3.5/5 |
Had it stuck with more of the community on which it was based, and less on how generous a few foreign doctors are, it would be easier to remember and root for the individual women by their names. Full Review |
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3/4 |
Fernando Meirelles take note: an honest and unvarnished portrayal of your subject, no matter the intended audience, is the most optimal path toward enlightenment and empathy. Full Review |
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4/6 |
Smith’s film is a pure, unabashed humanitarian call to action, but her subjects are eloquent and her cause unimpeachable. Full Review |
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Lushly photographed and carried along by a spirited score featuring both Ethiopian and Western music, but the film’s most striking element proves to be the women at its center. Full Review |
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Mary Olive Smith and Amy Bucher feel no need to overlay this health-care calamity with pious outrage. Full Review |
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Has the gentle feel of traditional anthropology. Full Review |
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If pic's B.O. potential seems slight, the same can't be said of the film's impact on awareness of Africa, altruism and the lifelong misery caused by reparable medical conditions in areas where the closest road can mean a three-day hike. Full Review |
CommentLatest News for A Walk to Beautiful
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