Original poster artwork · Great Cinema Master List
Spoiler-free premise
A resourceful ten-year-old girl in Riyadh becomes determined to buy a bicycle despite social restrictions.
Read expanded premiseLonger, still spoiler-free+
Ten-year-old Wadjda wants the green bicycle displayed near her Riyadh home so she can race friend Abdullah. Her mother refuses the expense and social risk, so Wadjda enters a school Qur'an recitation competition for the prize money.
Why it belongs
Through school rules, entrepreneurial schemes, friendship, and Al-Mohammed's irrepressible Wadjda, Wadjda makes one bicycle a rigorous image of autonomy.
Read expanded why it belongsThe fuller editorial case+
Under Haifaa Al-Mansour, bracelets, mixtapes, rooftop views, school corridors, veils, Qur'an practice, and the green bicycle make restriction and ingenuity tangible. Waad Mohammed's alert humor keeps Wadjda resourceful without making obstacles trivial.
Major award wins
No verified wins in this six-institution crosswalk.
Awards are reference metadata only · zero points in 40/40/20
Good for
Date NightFamily
Descriptive guidance derived from rating, genre, runtime, mood, and GCML scores.
Institutional reference ranks
Sight & Sound—IMDb Top 250—AFI 100—
Reference metadata only · not part of the 40/40/20 score
