“Pray the Devil Back to Hell,” directed by Gini Reticker and produced by Abigail E. Disney, wastes no time getting to the heart of the matter it so fearlessly documents. Focusing on a relatively unknown chapter in the history of modern Liberia, the filmmakers opt to tell the story in a straightforward manner, technically unembellished and simple in structure, allowing for the skin of the fundamental tragedies that spouted a revolution of sorts to be dissected, without giving too much historical depth with its short running time of 72 minutes. What matters though is that such a strong tale of good-natured defiance is immortalized and can in turn be witnessed by all for the inspiration present in this documentary overpowers its lack of technical achievement tenfold.

What makes this rough outline of the before and after effects of the female-empowered revolution potent is its drawing attention to the commanding group of indomitable, ordinary Liberian woman fought for peace in their war torn homeland in 2003, furious that the civil war-caused bloodshed tearing their beloved homeland apart was continuing at an alarming rate, with nothing but the power of determination and the will for peace and prosperity; very much a right, and not a privilege.

Women from different cultures and religions (Muslims and Christians) rose up, led by the enigmatic Leymah Gbowee, ignoring the religious implications, and took to the streets in the name of amity. Directly contrasting the erratically overwrought escapades of the male warlords and governmental combatants, the reasonable, impressionable women organized passive protests and all-powerful sex strikes which ensued until the attention of Charles Taylor, the corrupt one-time dictator and Hell-bound tyrant of Liberia, was captured to initiate peace talks with the equally corrupt warlords threatening to worsen the terrorization of Liberia’s women and children. When peaceful confrontations and pleads ceased to offer any reasonable resolution, the women resorted to far more unconventional methods of ensuring their voices be heard; something to behold indeed.

Narrated with conviction and eloquence by the women who found themselves directly involved in the movement, uplifted by the earthy vocals of Angelique Kidjo and strengthened by informational and some downright disturbing archive footage, a relatively simple narrative is presented but is only strengthened by various women’s emotional testimonies and moments that capture their acts in the name of peace that are honest and gut wrenching. As emotional as it all is, “Pray” is by no means a perfect documentary because of its limited running time, little opportunity is given for retrospective peaks down the lane of history to provide those with little prior knowledge of Liberia more of a back-story as well as not offering a look at how well this revolution still stands up today, which would be immensely interesting too.

Little qualms like those should not dishearten those who find themselves curious about the power of the human spirit which can, and does, overthrow all kinds of evil, such as fraudulent governments for example. “Pray the Devil Back to Hell” is, in fact, more powerful than “Iron Ladies of Liberia,” a documentary that revolved around the Liberian election that saw Africa’s very first female president voted into power, but as a clear-eyed, full-hearted double-bill chronicling such momentous events in the history of Liberia as initiated by the women themselves, the lucidity of such a combination is powerful for sure. The true joy of such films, and especially “Pray the Devil Back to Hell,” is in knowing stories that would otherwise go unnoticed on a wide scale now have the chance to be seen, marveled at, and uplift; steadfast simplicity or not.

Fatac Rating: ***½

Pray the Devil Back to Hell. Directed by Gini Reticker. Written by Sara Lukinson. Featuring: Leymah Gbowee, Asatu Bah Kenneth, Vaiba Flomo, Janet Johnson-Bryant, Etweda Cooper and Etty Weah. Running Time: 72 minutes. Age Restriction: Not Rated. Year: 2008. Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars. [B]