On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

Play trailer

2:04

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

PG-13

Mar 2025

1h 35m

Comedy

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

100%

Tomatometer

103 Reviews

67%

Popcornmeter

50+ Ratings

On an empty road in the middle of the night, Shula stumbles across the body of her uncle. As funeral proceedings begin around them, she and her cousins bring to light the buried secrets of their middle-class Zambian family, in filmmaker Rungano Nyoni's surreal and vibrant reckoning with the lies we tell ourselves.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

A vibrant exploration of family and social mores, On Becoming a Guineau Fowl marks another superb effort from writer-director Rungano Nyoni.

Read Critics Reviews

Adam Kempenaar

Filmspotting

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl is a reckoning, and Nyoni proves to be a force as a filmmaker.

Rated: 4.5/5

Jul 12, 2025

Full Review

Claudia Puig

FilmWeek (LAist)

It feels so specific and also universal, which are my favorite kinds of movies.

May 9, 2025

Full Review

Dwight Brown

DwightBrownInk.com

Gets more thoughtful and empowering by the minute. A modern fable. A fable that’s a treasure.

Rated: 3.5/4

Apr 20, 2025

Full Review

Andrew Kendall

Stabroek News

What becomes thrilling about how Nyoni weaves the story in “On Becoming a Guinea Fowl” is how it slowly pulls back the curtain to both affirm and problematise our assumptions of where we assume it might lead.

Sep 19, 2025

Full Review

John Serba

Decider

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl is a powerful drama with a distinctively strong and original voice and vision.

Sep 10, 2025

Full Review

Patrick Beatty

ABC4 Utah

This is a tough but powerful watch that explores family dynamics, cultural traditions, and generational trauma being broken for the sake of truth and progress.

Sep 7, 2025

Full Review

Read all reviews

Roman

Damn, ow, fantastic but ooooowwwww.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/31/25

Full Review

Christy L

Compelling story about death and cultural rituals in an entirely different setting.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/27/25

Full Review

Roy J

The sexual assault plot is hard-hitting, but I also found the Zambia culture depicted in the movie to be very compelling. Glad A24 distributed this African movie in the US.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/11/25

Full Review

Fong Kok Hoong F

The unspoken horrors in the culture of silence and detached observations of a traditional Zambian funeral send chills in this disquietingly composed chronicles of a series of circumstances that ensue when the protagonist finds one night while driving home from a Halloween party her uncle lying dead by the road.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/12/25

Full Review

Pearl M

I understood the concept culturally as one who actually raised guinea fowls…this movie is outstanding

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

11/09/25

Full Review

Sk T

It's long time after I see but I am waiting for let's see

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

11/09/25

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Rungano Nyoni

Director

Susan Chardy

Shula

Roy Chisha

Uncle Fred

Blessings Bhamjee

Young Shula

Chungu Bwalya

Farm Club Presenter #1

Maggie Mulubwa

Farm Club Presenter #2

The Penguin Lessons

77%

95%

The Penguin Lessons

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Penguin Lessons

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.

99%

94%

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.

Bob Trevino Likes It

95%

98%

Bob Trevino Likes It

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Bob Trevino Likes It

The Lost King

77%

92%

The Lost King

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Lost King

Jojo Rabbit

81%

94%

Jojo Rabbit

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Jojo Rabbit

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl: Trailer 1

2:04

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

On an empty road in the middle of the night, Shula stumbles across the body of her uncle. As funeral proceedings begin around them, she and her cousins bring to light the buried secrets of their middle-class Zambian family, in filmmaker Rungano Nyoni's surreal and vibrant reckoning with the lies we tell ourselves.

Director: Rungano Nyoni
Producer: Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Tim Cole
Screenwriter: Rungano Nyoni
Distributor: A24
Production Co: A24, BBC Film, Element Pictures
Rating: PG-13 (Thematic Material|Sexual Abuse|Suggestive References|Some Drug Use)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 7, 2025, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 8, 2025
Runtime: 1h 35m

Most Popular at Home Now