Watch Softie with film summary and movie review

Like so many other documentaries about political figures, “Softie” shows its central subject both at work and at home, recovering from the most recent run-in with the police. In the Mwangi household, three children run around and play as their dad plans his next course of action. When he gets up to leave, he cheerfully tells his kids, “I’m going to topple the government.” The ever-patient Njeri looks on cautiously. She’s very much a part of the story in “Softie,” however exasperated her husband makes her. While partners sometimes play only supporting roles in a politician’s story, in “Softie,” Njeri is a part of the heart of it all. The two share important conversations about the importance of family and country, but the documentary also shows the moments where he doesn’t clearly communicate with her. On the day the couple goes to register to vote, Boniface excitedly tells Soko’s camera he’s going to run for office and challenge the political system. Njeri’s face freezes. She’s completely caught off-guard by his news. When threats escalate against the upstart politician, she and their kids are forced into a temporary exile. The film is just as much about politics as it is a family working out the demands of a politically active life with the demands of the home. 

Before Boniface Mwangi became a budding politician, he was a fearless photographer on assignment covering the post-election protests in 2007. Radicalized by the unchecked carnage he saw, he quit the news business a few months later. In 2009, he began his protest with a national tour of the harrowing photos he took of the post-election violence, evidence that hateful rhetoric and corruption led to the senseless loss of life and limbs. In his recap of Kenya’s recent history, Mwangi quickly explains its roots in lasting colonial damage. The British originally pitted tribes against one another, creating a de facto caste system where there hadn’t been one before. Despite the country’s independence, that colonialist division is something politicians have latched onto to motivate voters. If they can’t appeal to them through tribal pride, the documentary shows how politicians will drive into various neighborhoods and bribe people to vote for them. It’s why power has remained within certain wealthy political families and why politicians have continued to secure an office despite not accomplishing anything for their constituents. This context is key in understanding Mwangi’s passion and zeal to see a better Kenya for his children. 

Regardless of the unpredictable election cycle, Mwangi runs a straightforward grassroots campaign with the help of a lively campaign manager, Khadija Mohammed, who’s enough of a personality for her own documentary. As the stakes rise over the news of candidates and election officials who have disappeared or found dead, “Softie” turns into a tense political thriller, gripping its audience’s attention as the events lead to the inevitable election day showdown. Despite the dangers and drama the Mwangi family faces, it’s hard to walk away from “Softie” without feeling at least a little bit more optimistic for progress.