Rating – 8/10

A key moment for me within ‘Sisters in Law’ is despite receiving her punishment for the ill treatment the justice system still gives them kindness. It also humanises her as due to lack of education amongst her and the people in the village, she is improving towards trying to do better.

I would give the film a 6/10.

i liked the verisimilitude in the documentary and it was very insightful into how the justice system works in Cameroon. it shows how shocking some people are and how the fact that even though the judges are women they are strong and powerful.

however i would not rate this film higher as i felt like due to the severity of the film it would be one that it would be one that i watch once and once only. i would have rated higher had thee been maybe a narrator or a scene that gives us some insight into what is happening at first. the documentary also feels fairly clunky and it feels like it is split into parts

My most memorable moment was when the child was explaining what had happened to her as it shows the severity of some of the situation the sisters were dealing with.

I would give the film a 6/10 as i enjoyed the raw footage feel of the film having little intervention to bring the audience as close as possible to the peoples situation however interviews with the people involved should been included to get a larger picture of what they are feeling as well as context. A scene which stuck out to me was when the trails ended bringing people to justice especially during the end when the women was given the divorce showing how relived and empowered she felt.

Score – 7/10

I enjoyed moments of this documentary but thought that some parts were slightly repetitive.

Key moment which made a specific impact on me as a spectator – The scene in which Manka’s Auntie was getting punishment for beating Manka, as it felt like we were in the scene with them because of how real it was, so it was very engaging.

Rating – 7/10

A key moment for me was when Manka’s uncle arrived, and learnt that her step-sister had pretended to be her auntie and had beaten her many times with a cane. The lack of narration or infographics is effective as the actuality footage of his shocked reaction to finding out what had happened to Manka reinforces the extent to which she was abused.

I’ll give this film an 8/10, despite not being something I’d personally watch, it does an amazing job of what it sets out to achieve.

Key moment: The moment where they present the aftermath of the court trials held against the abusive husband in a Muslim relationship really stood out for me. It shows these people for the first time in this documentary smiling, not being by their husbands side, and feeling empowered as a free community. This documentary is never interrupted with an interview, expert opinions or voice overs, but rather leaves it all to observational footage. This makes this scene all the more powerful, as we have created that personal connection with the victim rather than some other voice, so to see the joy on their faces is truly heart-warming.

overall I will give sister’s in law a 5/10. The documentary offered a great insight into the horrific crimes being committed in Kumba. The verisimilitude is excellent as we are watching from the prospective of someone in the courtroom as if we are in the audience. The film also has no mediation which adds to the realism of the final product.

a key moment is the exploration of Manka’s court case as the directors showcase the various reactions of multiple witnesses and relative of Manta.

A weakness of the documentary is that it often feels disjointed and scene transitions happen randomly. I believe this is at the fault of the editing and post production which gives the documentary a cheap look. This vastly decreases the enjoyability of the film. I believe the film could be improved with the use of narration in order to better transition to different scenes.

Score: 8/10

Key Moment:

This scene was extremely effective in creating a response in the spectator; as you can see just how supportive and caring the female law advocates are in this case. They discuss men seeing women as property, once they are bought they can do anything they’d like to them; the lawyers comfort the victim after her court hearing and reassure her this is not the case; giving her the courage to stay strong despite the taboo of divorce and taking your husband to court in Muslim culture.