Bamako. Melé is a bar singer, her husband Chaka is out of work and the couple is on the verge of breaking up... In the courtyard of the house they share with other families, a trial court ...
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In the last days of 1999, after a few shots of a French supermarket, abundant in food and color, we hear Dramane compose a letter home to his father in Mali whom he then visits in the ... See full summary »
A native of Mauritania is delighted when he is chosen to work in Paris. Hoping to parlay the experience into a better life for himself, he eagerly prepares for his departure from his native... See full summary »
Director:
Med Hondo
Stars:
Robert Liensol,
Théo Légitimus,
Gabriel Glissant
A cattle herder and his family who reside in the dunes of Timbuktu find their quiet lives -- which are typically free of the Jihadists determined to control their faith -- abruptly disturbed.
As World War II is going on in Europe, a conflict arises between the French and the Diola-speaking tribe of Africa, prompting the village women to organize their men to sit beneath a tree to pray.
Director:
Ousmane Sembene
Stars:
Andongo Diabon,
Robert Fontaine,
Michel Renaudeau
In pre-colonial times a peddler crossing the savanna discovers a child lying unconscious in the bush. When the boy comes to, he is mute and cannot explain who he is. The peddler leaves him ... See full summary »
Director:
Gaston Kaboré
Stars:
Serge Yanogo,
Rosine Yanogo,
Joseph Nikiema
A group of students are spending the summer vacation at a university camp studying the science of linguistics. One of the camp directors, Jaroslaw, is a young professor who prefers the ... See full summary »
Director:
Krzysztof Zanussi
Stars:
Piotr Garlicki,
Zbigniew Zapasiewicz,
Christine Paul
Set in a pre-colonial African past, Tilai is about an illicit love affair and its consequences. Saga returns to his village after an extended absence to discover that his father has taken ... See full summary »
Director:
Idrissa Ouedraogo
Stars:
Rasmané Ouédraogo,
Ina Cissé,
Roukietou Barry
Bamako. Melé is a bar singer, her husband Chaka is out of work and the couple is on the verge of breaking up... In the courtyard of the house they share with other families, a trial court has been set up. African civil society spokesmen have taken proceedings against the World Bank and the IMF whom they blame for Africa's woes... Amidst the pleas and the testimonies, life goes on in the courtyard. Chaka does not seem to be concerned by this novel Africa's desire to fight for its rights...Written by
Anonymous
During the inset "Death in Timbuktu" "western," just before the first gunshot, a car can be seen moving between two buildings in the background. This, however, could be interpreted as intentional by the director, who was parodying non-Western interpretations of a "western" (other countries who partake in a love of westerns are Thailand and Cambodia). The child in this scene is also wearing a Nike shirt. The effect is to present the sort of low-budget, pulp film one might see in a television broadcast in Mali, while supplying a metaphor to the actual movie's plot. See more »
I had no idea what I was getting into when I went to watch this film. I can't tell much without giving away what the movie is all about. I will only say that the "acting" is just perfect, as long as it is not acting. People are mostly activists who actually speak out the truth. The movie is highly symbolic and we have to understand that the director is not trying to be realistic or straightforward. The trial that is taking place in a regular house yard, is surrounded by the everyday lives of the people of Bamako. The result is moving, beautiful and awakening experience. Especially for those who are not very familiar with the situation in Africa and don't know or don't want to know what the West is doing to billions of people around the world in order to maintain our level of useless consumption, it will be an eye opening experience. I absolutely recommend this movie.
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I had no idea what I was getting into when I went to watch this film. I can't tell much without giving away what the movie is all about. I will only say that the "acting" is just perfect, as long as it is not acting. People are mostly activists who actually speak out the truth. The movie is highly symbolic and we have to understand that the director is not trying to be realistic or straightforward. The trial that is taking place in a regular house yard, is surrounded by the everyday lives of the people of Bamako. The result is moving, beautiful and awakening experience. Especially for those who are not very familiar with the situation in Africa and don't know or don't want to know what the West is doing to billions of people around the world in order to maintain our level of useless consumption, it will be an eye opening experience. I absolutely recommend this movie.