Malala Yousafzai is one of the most influential girls in the world right now. She has been fighting for the right of education for women since she was 11. At age 15, she was shot in the head by the Taliban. Now at age18, she is the youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate in history. In the documentary He Named Me Malala, viewers are given a deeper look into her life.

For the documentary, which was shot over 18 months, it is the private moments that make it worth watching.The film’s director David Guggenheim lets people into the more personal side of Malala. The public sees her tight relationship with her father, who himself is a teacher and an advocate for education, picking fights with her younger brothers, and laughing at the Minions. This aspect of the film drives the point that Malala is really a schoolgirl focusing on her GCSE’s at her Birmingham secondary school.

The movie also depicts animated portions that give context to Malala’s story and fight. While this part isn’t as engaging as the others, it serves an important purpose and it educates. It shows the public Malala, the one who delivers United Nations addresses, speaks with world leaders, and, most importantly, fights for the rights of voiceless children.

In the end, the film is an educational piece. The documentary concludes with “Raise your voice – stand with Malala” and it makes the point that Malala’s activism is incredibly relevant, why it is so relevant, and that this is just the beginning.