If you are reading this, you have likely already seen the trailer for On Becoming a Guinea Fowl . You’ve seen the striking imagery: the empty Zambian landscapes, the surreal costumes, and that quiet, simmering dread that Rungano Nyoni does better than anyone else.
Shula spends the entire film trying to fly away from her past, but the flock (her family) keeps dragging her back to the pecking order. It is a stunning visual metaphor for and the performance of grief. Is it worth the rental fee? If you appreciated I Am Not a Witch (Nyoni’s previous masterpiece), you will love this. If you liked Atlantics (by Mati Diop) or The Zone of Interest for its structural horror, this is for you.
On Becoming a Guinea Fowl follows , a woman living in a wealthy, westernized Zambian family. After a sudden death in the family, the funeral rituals begin—and so does the unraveling of a massive family secret regarding abuse.
Nyoni blends . One moment you are watching a tense family argument about catering; the next, a woman literally turns into a bird. It is uncomfortable, hilarious in a dark way, and ultimately devastating. The "Guinea Fowl" Metaphor Why the title? In the film, the guinea fowl is a bird known for being loud, chaotic, and impossible to ignore—yet always running away from danger.
However, be warned: The pacing is slow. Nyoni forces you to sit in the silence of complicity. There are no car chases, but there is a 10-minute shot of women staring at a casket that feels like a horror movie.
Or, perhaps you just searched because you heard the buzz from Cannes or Sundance and need to know where this film is hiding.