In Shimoni, a man newly released from prison returns to his rural Kenyan village to start life anew but finds the horrors from his past still haunt him.
Once a respected English teacher, Geoffrey (Justin Mirichii) has spent the last seven years in prison and emerges a quiet, ghostly version of himself. With nowhere else to go, he returns to his home village of Shimoni, which translates to “The Pit” in English. He despises the place because it holds horrible memories for him. Nevertheless, a Catholic church there takes him in and gives him farm work (predominantly milking cows) and bible reading sessions to keep him busy. Father Jacob (Sam Psenjen), the priest at the Catholic church, is aware of Geoffrey’s crime and is committed to giving him a second chance.
Geoffrey is a man of few words and generally keeps to himself, although he expresses a strong desire to return to teaching and his frustration with what he considers menial tasks. Just as he slowly starts to settle in, he has a casual run-in with Weru (Daniel Njoroge), a man who terrifies Geoffrey and clearly has a connection to his past, although Weru doesn’t seem to remember or recognize Geoffrey. This meeting sends Geoffrey into a downward spiral, and without much support around him or any confidante he can turn to for help, he internalizes his pain and increasingly pushes others away.
One young woman named Beatrice (Vivian Wambui) is intrigued by Geoffrey and keen to get to know him, but Geoffrey is extremely guarded and hesitant to interact with her. He is obviously uncomfortable with her attempts to get close, but Beatrice misses (or ignores) his clear signals and pushes her way well beyond his comfort zone. It leads to a rejection that leaves both parties feeling further isolated. Ironically, it’s only once they’re both feeling emotionally disconnected and confused that they manage to form a tentative bond.
Over the course of the film, we learn a little about the abuse Geoffrey and his older brother suffered at the hands of Weru when they were children, as well as about the terrible crime for which Geoffrey was imprisoned. Few others know about either, and the plan is to keep it that way in order to slowly help Geoffrey reintegrate into the community. However, when a woman at the church named Martha (Muthoni Gathecha) hires Geoffrey to tutor her young niece in English, Father Jacob is extremely reluctant to allow it and must make a choice that could expose the truth about Geoffrey’s crime and incarceration to the wider community.
Meanwhile, Geoffrey seems to struggle internally with his past and is unable to come to terms with the cycle of abuse that led to tragedy later in his life. The only real signs of his distress are physical, as he speaks little about his experiences. But, his silence and the fear in his body language are effective at conveying his inner turmoil.
The only person Geoffrey confides in (somewhat) is his brother, who comes to visit him once at the church. Geoffrey tries to discuss their shared trauma but his brother largely sweeps it aside in an effort to ignore it (his own way of dealing with it). As Geoffrey points out, society is much to blame for its role in stifling men’s emotions and their ability to discuss those emotions—particularly with other men. However, when Geoffrey shows his brother that Weru is still in town, his brother also breaks down.
Character development is somewhat lacking in the film as we’re kept largely on surface level with the characters. We recognize Geoffrey’s pain but we learn very little about him or his past, and what we do learn comes in small fragments throughout the film. He has small interactions with a few other characters, but it never gets very far. We also don’t learn much about Weru or how he came to be in Geoffrey’s life as a child in the first place. However, while narrative depth and character development are not the focus of the film, Shimoni does take a hard, devastating look at the emotional tolls of fear, silence, and cycles of abuse.
Shimoni is editor-turned-writer-director Angela Wanjiku’s debut feature. The film screened at TIFF earlier this year and was selected as part of the Red Sea film festival, where it competed in the Red Sea: Competition category.
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