Soviet-made Cuban films don’t do half measures, they go all in. I am Cuba is no exception. The cinematography is more stylish than most films you’ll ever see and some of the shots are truly unforgettable. Add in Cuban history from the 1920s to the 1950s and you’ve got one truly epic film.
From: Cuba, North AmericaContinue reading “I am Cuba – A Soviet Made Masterpiece”
Watch: Trailer, Watch on Amazon
Next: Lucia, Battle of Algiers, Battleship Potemkin
In the opening minutes we are introduced to a 16 year old standing amidst dead bodies and gunfire who says that he belongs on the front lines. This is our baptism of fire – we can immediately see that the country has descended into chaos. Cut to a very brief introduction to Ukraine and President Yanukovych pictured alongside the word ‘criminal.’ From there we are taken to the first gatherings of the crowd at Maidan after the President declared he would not enter the EU.
First off, the footage of the whole protest from late 2013 to early 2014 is incredible. Afineevsky had a team of 28 cameramen and camerawomen shoot clips throughout the protests and of many people involved. We are introduced to kids, religious figures, and men and women from an array of backgrounds. The scope of the protests are matched by the scope of the footage.
Even the action captured is incredible and extremely hard to watch at times due to the violence. Nothing from the protests seems to escape the camera.
On the other hand, Afineevsky masterfully influences the viewer. After the film I felt compelled to do something to support Ukraine and the people’s fight for freedom. The footage of large groups of people singing and working together to build a make-shift community successfully gets viewers on the side of the protestors. Even the music rouses us to support the protestors – it builds when crowds gather and start working together, and turns more dramatic when the people are met by the police.
The whole film becomes a battle of ‘the people’ vs. violence and corruption. Obviously we are going to choose the people! The people interviewed and the narrators all support the protestors. In this respect, it would have been nice to have another point of view. Evidently there were people against the protestors goals, but there is no attempt to give them any voice.
This is the second powerful documentary that Netflix has produced showing big city protests, the first being The Square (2013) showing the Egyptian Revolution at Tahir Square. Both Winter on Fire and The Square were nominated for Academy Awards. Both show protests against the government and how they progress. Both are recommended viewing!
Uncertain Future gives you a rare look into the small country at the heart of Africa: Burundi. It takes place in 2015 when President Nkurunziza seeks to rule for a third term against the wishes of a lot of the citizens of Bujumbura (the capital). Get a first hand look at the protests and violence in Eddy Munyaneza’s brave documentary.
From: Burundi, AfricaContinue reading “Uncertain Future – Political Unrest in Burundi”
Watch: Trailer, Amazon (Rent), Vimeo (Rent)
Next: Winter on Fire, The Square, Rosewater
What bad things happened in 2015? You may remember the Paris attacks, the Charleston Church shootings, or even the picture of the drowned Syrian boy lying face down on the beach. However, you probably didn’t hear about the Turkish crackdown on the Kurdish PKK. It seems like no professional cameramen were there to capture the events. However, just as in Silvered Waters, the public captured it all on their mobile phones.
From: Turkey, AsiaContinue reading “Meteors – Martial Law in Kurdish Turkey”
Watch: Trailer
Next: Silvered Water, Ahlaam, The Burmese Harp
The story of Downstream to Kinshasa starts with the Six Day War from 2000. Unlike the more famous 6 Day War fought between Israel and Egypt, this one was fought between Uganda and Rwanda in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Everything centered on the town of Kisangani where approximately 4,000 people were killed and 3,000 injured.
Among the survivors was director Dieudo Hamadi. In the Q&A for the film, he mentions that he was 15 or 16 during the conflict and doesn’t remember much about it. But on one return to his hometown his memories of the war were triggered from meeting a group of people (who become the focus of this documentary) that were disabled by it. He was privileged in being able to reconstruct a normal life and forget about the war, whilst others were permanently scared by it.
He was not the only one that forgot. And if one man who lived the war had lost his memories of it, it’s not too surprising that the rest of the town and country have forgotten the war too and the victims of it.
In Downstream to Kinshasa, we follow a group of people disabled by the war. They travel to the capital to make their story heard after it seems to have fallen on deaf ears at home. They want reparations from the country that refused to protect them.
Throughout their time in Kisangani and through their journey to Kinshasa, they’re shot going about their lives. One of the most incredible sections is their journey on a flat topped cargo boat down the Congo river. It’s transformed into a moving village with makeshift protection against the elements. It’s a multi-day journey that reminded me of the desert crossing migrants in Tenere.
Whilst they’re journeying, the director cuts between their present reality on their journey and shots of the group performing on the stage. The present documents their hope for change and their disabilities as we see it, whilst the shots of them performing on stage shows their story as they tell it. Their stage play appears self-deriding and built for a popular audience, but intertwining it in the documentary empowers their story. Simply including their experiences, as they tell it, validates them. They’re heard by more people thanks to this film. And in the context of their journey to the capital, including their story as they tell it emboldens their storytelling before they face their ultimate test – convincing the politicians and public in the capital.
Head to our AFI Fest Hub for more reviews and short films from AFI Fest 2020.
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