The sparkling tomboy spirit of Jo March and Anne of Green Gables lives on in Saudi Arabia. Wadjda (an irresistible Waad Mohammed) is a 10-year-old girl living in a suburb of Riyadh. Her fondest desire is her own bicycle, so she can race her friend Abdullah. She’s not supposed to play with Abdullah, and indeed life is full of things she’s not supposed to do: wear high-top sneakers, go without her headscarf or ride a bike, an activity thought to be dangerous to a girl’s virginity.
What makes the movie so delightful is that Wadjda isn’t trying to make trouble; she’s just being herself. A shot of the system of wire hangers attached to her radio so she can pick up Western music stations sums up her can-do attitude.
To get that bicycle, Wadjda must overcome the objections of her mother (Reem Abdullah), who’s distraught over her husband’s possibly taking a second wife. The one chance to get the money lies in the cash prize awarded at a Koran recitation.
Haifaa Al-Mansour’s first full-length feature is also the first filmed entirely on location in the kingdom. She shows a delicate touch with this place where small gestures carry great meaning. Al-Mansour has also made a movie that leaves you yearning for another chapter in the adventures of this little girl.