The 2017 Toronto International Film Festival hosted the Canadian premiere for Angelina Jolie’s “First They Killed My Father” before it was released on Netflix. The film is based on the memoir of the same name by Loung Ung, who was an executive producer and co-screenwriter with Angelina Jolie. A majority of the film was done in the Khmer Cambodian language with some English, French and Vietnamese thrown in.
Told through the eyes of a young Loung Ung (Sreymoch Sareum), the film began in April 1975 when her family was forced to leave their home in Phnom Penh after the Khmer Rouge army invaded with their new order. As the Khmer Rouge army forced their new regime on abolishing any corrupting Western influences, Loung and her family try to stay safe and stick together as they travel between labour camps. Unfortunately the family was separated when Loung’s oldest siblings (Meng, Khouy and Keav) were forced to leave to work on the front lines. The separation didn’t end there when the family secret came out. Fearing the worse, Ma and Pa Ung (Socheata Sveng and Kompheak Phoeung, respectively) sent their remaining children away before the army could get to them. Forced to survive on her own, Loung was left to fend for herself in order to survive under the Khmer Rouge reign. She was trained as a soldier and was constantly separated from her remaining siblings (Kim and Chou). Despite her young age, Loung was forced to witness the gruesome reality that war brought to those on and off the field.
As the film is told through a child’s eyes, it didn’t lighten the horror that was experienced. Through Loung’s observations, the audience experienced not only the horrid treatment she endured but also the treatment of those around her that she had witnessed being punished (like her siblings when they tried to get extra food). No one was safe under the reign of the Khmer Rouge. Loung demonstrated her will to survive as she adapted to her surroundings. She learned what she could so she could use it to her advantage and she showed no weakness to her enemy, even while she was in enemy territory. Sreymoch Sareum’s portrayal of this survivor’s experiences was expressive as her actions displayed what words couldn’t describe of the hardships that were dealt to her.
This film was dedicated to the survivors and to those who were lost during the reign of Khmer Rouge. The film shed light onto the grotesque treatment the Cambodian people experienced during this undertaking. Many citizens were uprooted from their lives and forced to strip away everything they had, living off the bare minimum as they worked for the rebels. They were forced to follow a new order or face the consequences where those who opposed them were killed. With Jolie’s cinematic techniques, the audience experienced this devastating world through a child’s eyes, uncovering and experiencing the horrifying truth that she lived in. Occasionally point-of-view shots were used to highlight this fact. From the keen detail to showcase Loung’s observations to the slowed moments of emotional trauma, the audience was left on the edge of their seats as they experienced the floodgate of emotions that this harrowing truth brought forth.
Original Title: មុនដំបូងខ្មែរក្រហមសម្លាប់ប៉ារបស់ខ្ (Khmer)
Director: Angelina Jolie
Writer: Loung Ung (memoir)
Screenplay: Loung Ung, Angelina Jolie
Country of Origin: Cambodia | USA
Language: Khmer, English, French
Length: 136 minutes
Original Release: September 15, 2017
Publication Note:
This was published for AsianWave Magazine.
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