Moolaade (2004) Dir. Ousmane Sembene
Set in contempory Burkina Faso, Moolaade is an empowered feminist strike against patriarchy. Six young girls seek sanctuary in the hope of avoiding being subjected to circumcision. This of course stirs up trouble in the hermetic community as male elders are of the belief that traditions must be adhered and that female genital mutilation is a natural rite of passage. From here Sembene peels away at layers of tradition, that still exist in many areas of the sub-Sahara, that amount to closed minded male domination, enslavement, mutilation and superstitious attitude towards women and society.
Sublime Frequencies; Isan: Folk and Pop Music of Northeast Thailand
As part of the Sublime Frequencies record labels on going collating and exposing of rare and exotic sounds from the worlds back tracks and frontiers, Isan: Folk and Pop Music of Northeast Thailand is another fly on the wall road-documentary from the northeast and remote region of Isan where Thai culture mixes and mingles with Cambodian and give birth to a unique near hermetic culture.
We get first hand gorilla style footage of traditional outdoor ceremonies, buskers, nightclubs, folk music and get a genuine feel for the on the ground music and sounds that inhabits this region of the world.
Xaaskayga Araweelo (2006) Dir. Abdisalam Aato
This film has been labelled as a Somali ‘Scary Movie’ and it does sport an all Somali cast, crew and is spoken in Somali. Considering the tragic circumstances that afflict Somalia at present it is hard to imagine a film industry existing there and sure enough this film is located and shot in the United States. And in a way represents a something of a triumph for the diaspora of Somali culture and its continuity. It’s a shame then that this gorilla style near home movie quality film is so poor.
A man fears that his wife may be a serial killer and goes through the motions of learning the truth, the film plods along with long uneventful takes, bad edits that can’t help but be noticed and a repeating piano score that acts more as a lullaby then introducing and tension into this supposed slasher flick.
Wedding in Galilee (1988) Dir. Michael Khleifi
Given that since this films release some 23 years ago there has been two Palestinian Intifadas, it is useful to see a film that documents the mood of the Palestinian and Israeli peoples before the outbreak of the first Intifada. Ostensibly a film about a man who attempts to hold a wedding celebration for his son that will bring great honour upon the family the film goes on to chart the day of preparations and the traditional ceremony. All this is done with long takes that allows time for you to notice the breeze and the heat of the land. But invariably there are tensions to be worked through which relate to the bigger picture of what is going on between these tow peoples and what has go on in Palestine over the last hundred years.
