First They Killed My Father

What happens when all the norms of civilization implode. Filmed from the perspective of that of a child, superbly played by, first time actress Sareum Srey Moch who puts in a stunning performance. Perhaps we as adults forget the skills we had as children, like "Let's pretend" and those that relearn them are endowed with great wealth and honour. Angelina Jolie must be congratulated on her lightness of touch, definitely no Hollywood here. The cinematography is well shot, mostly at the height of a child which helps reinforce the helplessness of the protagonists in the dystopian, year zero world that is Cambodia in 1975. There have been many other films that give a more rounded interpretation of this period but none to my recollection, from the perspective of a child, and this is something that all of us can relate to given the special talents of Sareum Srey Moch, who magically takes us back to how a seven year old sees the world, for better or for worse.

Exquisite cinematography, phenomenal performances, and a magnificent account of modern day genocide. Based on the incredible memoir by Loung Ung, First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers, tells a haunting story of survival. The images stay with you long after the film concludes, and you're left with an indelible memory of atrocities that are scarcely known. As well as an understanding of how human beings can transcend staggering circumstances. Must see!

I watched it yesterday. The scene where she stood crying as the world was on fire sent me into the worst flashback in 54 years. I can't stop sobbing. I have never talked about the worst I had in Vietnam as a Combat Medic. I started to tell my wife about the time I picked up a 3 year old little girl who was just standing there crying. Her family had just been killed by an explosion. We were in a firefight with NVA soldiers. I grabbed her into my arms, and headed for a berm to protect her. I took a hit in my helmet as I ran with her. I just had a total breakdown in front of my wife. I sobbed uncontrollably. This film brought 54 years of keeping things inside me right to the surface. I have spent my whole life wondering what happened to her after the village women took her later when the fight was over. This film put me back to that day, that fight, with a vengeance from HELL. I have a daughter who is a Lt. With a very large Sheriffs Dept. A couple years ago she was the first Cop to enter an active school shooting in progress. As she entered the school carrying an M4, she took two rounds at close range from a shooter, they both went under her left arm. We protect children. You people who call me a baby killer are disgusting and should be ashamed to look in a mirror. Great job Angelina....

The film is Netflix polished with breathtaking scenes and a suspenseful atmosphere. The story is based on truth from a 7 year old girls perspective during the rise of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia.

Scenes of family survival and the horrors of war hold up well and should be of delight to anyone interested in the politics that engulfed South East Asia during the 1970's.

The dialogue in the movie is very basic but I'm left to wonder whether that was the intention as the story is from a small child's perspective trying to make sense of her surroundings.

There is very little in character development or details on what is actually happening politically in the movie in most scenes.

I would recommend people read into the Khmer Rouge before watching as it would make a more enjoyable movie experience, paying particular attention as the why Western Allied Nations supported such a brutal regime after the fall of Vietnam to the Communists.

God bless to all those in Cambodia that lived and died through this troubled time, great movie and certainly brought regular tears to my eyes.

First of all, I think the way Jolie directed this movie is beautiful and real. Words couldn't describe how appreciated I am for her to put this bitter history of Cambodia on screen.

The only thing that kept bugging my mind is that I didn't feel the sympathy and frights as much as I supposed to do. There were so many times where I felt like the book could be way far better than the action movie (despite the fact that, I haven't even read the book). The movie ravels the story from the perspective of a kid so it is very understandable that there was very few dialog and there could be lots of time where you feel like---blank, nothing. There were times where the girl found herself in the middle of chaos, unable to process whats going on---and while watching such scenes, I could imagine myself intriguing to her thoughts in the book instead. What I mean is, the movie is without doubt, a masterpiece, but I don't think it is the best choice to tell this traumatic event through a kid perspective. Tho I think movie like this need to be produced, I can't deny that there are more cons than the pros for letting adults hear the story of a war from a kid.

However, That was the only problem with the movie and it clearly deserves a watch. Especially for those who have known basic history of this event, I think you're going to enjoy it very much. I would definitely watch it all over again any day. (Please excuse all the written mistakes as English is not my native language.)