It is always sad to watch parents loose their children. Every child is so precious that when a parent looses its own child that parent is finished. It gives that parent a mission in life, which in the most cases is fruitless one, in this film may be it is not so fruitless.I do not believe in the African countries. Most of those states are failed states. They do not have any chance of survival, and people in many of those countries are doomed. It is a real life risk for the white people to go there, my father almost lost his head going to Zaire on business. When Mobutu Sese Seko fled the country they devastated his compound to the ground. The guards and workers, who lived decent lives during those years are now barley surviving. I would never go to Africa unless you want to have a personal tragedy like this one.

Something tells me that if you are a middle-upper class white woman in her 30s to 60s, you will find this movie spell binding, informative, and touching.I am none of those demographics, and saw the movie as typical "Africa is a country that needs our help" plea.I need to offer no spoilers; the movie, was every bit unsurprising and clichéd as anticipated. Hilary Swank plays an nonredeemable negligent mother named Mary, who, stupidly takes her son to South Africa without doing...perhaps a quick google search? The Black Mambazo joke, the "does he have the flu," the all around idiocy on her character's part is NOT what any "regular" mother would do, and hence her endless boo-hooing and selfish behavior leaves no empathy. I'm supposed to give her a pulitzer because she ends up losing her son to a disease that kills people on a good portion of the African Continent??? Martha, is only mildly more redeeming. Whether I should feel sympathy for her, I don't know. She's just a whiny ole British woman with the voice of a stereotypical whiny old British woman. behaving like a whiny old British woman. Yeah her son was stupid himself, being such a wonderful white person giving away his medicine (oh how I wish we were all like that!), like everyone in this movie, he ended up dying trying to help those "poor Africans." He just wanted to take pictures!! Poor baby! The strength they find in each other, is giving themselves more credit than they deserve. They "find strength" also helping these destitute, helpless people, who seem to just always be helpless and destitute.Talk about Naivete. Apparently the only thing white people seem to be portrayed as in this movie are "unsung heroes of the African cause." That apparently, only people listen to nicely dressed white people when it comes to the plight of issues on the African Continent. If, you really think you "learned something" about Malaria, you have no clue. Its a disease that isn't in your country because, well, you aren't disenfranchised or poor. Its really that simple, and they don't acknowledge that in the least. You really think, the governments don't know? You really think its a matter of knowledge? It isn't. Its people who can't afford the bare necessities, because of a long trend of being disenfranchised and indebted, then ignored.And then she has the nerve to pretend she knows what the natives were going through?? Um, honey, you live in a pretty house in a pretty suburb, eat three meals a day, and if ish hits the fan, you get on a plane and leave. You have a giant memorial for your son, filled with what looked like every extra from every movie ever, the little whiny girl from X Factor, and spiffy new LBDs. And YOU know what someone who is living on a $1 a day is going through????? You know, I will re neg on my glaring Character reference. Hilary Swank DID play a very GOOD annoying, ungrateful mother. She had me convinced.

This story of mothers fighting for a cause is both inspiring and informing the audience on the real problems that face out current world whether we are aware of them. Mary (Hilary Swank) brings her son to Africa at the same time as Martha's (Brenda Blethyn) son Ben comes to be a teacher to young kids in the country. Both women lose their sons to Malaria and when Mary comes back after the lose she meets Martha and the women come together while in different continents to bring more help to the issues of Malaria in the world. The story was inspiring especially when seeing this women be in great grief but trying to fight to make a difference especially the character of Mary who really was the main character of the film and when the scenes were showed of her son dying of the terrible it very emotional in both how it was directing, written and acted by Hilary Swank. Hilary Swank is a great film actress but lately she has seem to have taken a break from any film worthy of her talents but with her role as Mary I believe it may be a return to form. From her reaction to her son George's death to her final speech in front of some government people. Throughout she is asked to not show her emotions even when she addresses it at the funeral of her son where she does not cry. Brenda Blethyn plays Martha and she is just as impressive as Swank while she appears in less of the movie. Her emotions are all over her face and it was very well played by Blethyn. The film was strong written, directed and acted by it's stars Swank and Blethyn that it was a great movie.MOVIE GRADE: B+ (MVP: Hilary Swank)

This film was truly inspiring. It really changed my view on malaria, and really put into perspective how my life differs to others. Poor children are dying because of this horrible disease, and this film captures the awareness brilliantly. We are truly lucky to have live the lives we live, and this film proves that. I now put myself in others shoes before I react upon occurrences in my own life. Also, it meant a lot to me, because my mum knows "Ben's" mum, in real life. So having the thought in the back of my mind, that this story is true, really strengthens the realism. Yes, it makes it more sad, but all the more inspiring. The film is so well put together, and really thumps you with a whirlwind of emotion and sympathy. A very sad, but brilliant film. A must watch.