When Haile Gerima, the acclaimed Ethiopian-born filmmaker of Harvest 3000 Years (1976) and Bush Mama (1979), saw Ousmane Sembène’s film Mandabi (1968) for the first time, he said it almost gave him a heart attack. Perhaps the reason for this excitement is harder to imagine for a contemporary Western audience; what shocked him was that the actors spoke Wolof, their native language, and not French, the language imposed on them by their former colonizers. One of the continents’ first films made in Wolof, this milestone in Africa’s cinematographic and emancipatory history wasn’t Sembène’s first attempt at making a film in which the actors speak in their own language. Some years earlier he planned to shoot La Noire de… in Wolof, but was forced to rewrite the script in French in order to get the film financed. This meant that even the internal monologues of the Senegalese protagonist Gomis Diouana (played...
- 8/29/2019
- MUBI
If African film is inarguably the worst-represented section of international cinema, Janus Films have outshone their already-high standards with the restoration of Senegalese filmmaker Ousmane Sembène‘s cornerstone Black Girl. The director was recently highlighted in a documentary that can now be streamed on Netflix, and, among all recent endeavors, this might be the best with which to acquaint oneself with his cinema.
It’s good news, then, that Black Girl will begin its run at BAMcinématek this Wednesday, after which point it should expand to various cities before inevitably coming to Blu-ray via Criterion. The trailer will give some real sense of Janus’ efforts — this 4K restoration is lovely, likely the sort that only brings us closer to its film’s intense emotions and precise form.
See the preview below:
Synopsis:
Ousmane Sembène, one of the greatest and most groundbreaking filmmakers who ever lived and the most internationally renowned...
It’s good news, then, that Black Girl will begin its run at BAMcinématek this Wednesday, after which point it should expand to various cities before inevitably coming to Blu-ray via Criterion. The trailer will give some real sense of Janus’ efforts — this 4K restoration is lovely, likely the sort that only brings us closer to its film’s intense emotions and precise form.
See the preview below:
Synopsis:
Ousmane Sembène, one of the greatest and most groundbreaking filmmakers who ever lived and the most internationally renowned...
- 5/16/2016
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
A landmark of African cinema, Ousmane Sembène's "Black Girl" has been pored over by audiences, critics and academics ever since its initial release half a century ago. Janus Films will soon re-release the Senegalese auteur's groundbreaking film in a 4K restoration, the trailer for which is now available. Read More: Documentary 'Sembene!' Is Honest Portrait of the Father of African Cinema "Black Girl" stars Mbissine Thérèse Diop as Diouana, a young woman from Dakar who moves to France to work in a wealthy French couple's home. Initially elated, she quickly becomes disillusioned by the experience — she's made to feel increasingly alienated and Other by her employers, who view her as an exotic servant and little more. It's a powerful, upsetting movie. Read More: How Nollywood Redefined Conversations on African Cinema and Culture Sometimes called "the father of African film," Sembène later went on to direct the disturbing...
- 5/12/2016
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
The interview that's made the biggest splash so far this week is Bret Easton Ellis's with Quentin Tarantino for the New York Times' T Magazine. Chances are, you'll have seen a few snippets already. Such the bit about Ava DuVernay doing "a really good job on Selma but Selma deserved an Emmy." Also in today's roundup: Martin Scorsese talks with Jerry Lewis, Jeff Bridges chats with Roger Deakins, plus interviews with Laurie Anderson, Takashi Miike, Hou Hsiao-hsien, Jerzy Skolimowski, Mbissine Thérèse Diop, Dustin Guy Defa, Guy Maddin and Evan Johnson—and more. » - David Hudson...
- 10/14/2015
- Keyframe
The interview that's made the biggest splash so far this week is Bret Easton Ellis's with Quentin Tarantino for the New York Times' T Magazine. Chances are, you'll have seen a few snippets already. Such the bit about Ava DuVernay doing "a really good job on Selma but Selma deserved an Emmy." Also in today's roundup: Martin Scorsese talks with Jerry Lewis, Jeff Bridges chats with Roger Deakins, plus interviews with Laurie Anderson, Takashi Miike, Hou Hsiao-hsien, Jerzy Skolimowski, Mbissine Thérèse Diop, Dustin Guy Defa, Guy Maddin and Evan Johnson—and more. » - David Hudson...
- 10/14/2015
- Fandor: Keyframe
Screening tomorrow afternoon at 2Pm, as part of the The Master, The Rebel, and the Artist: The Films of Ousmane Sembène, Djibril Diop Mambéty, and Moussa Sene Absa screening series happening now at the Museum Of The Moving Image… Ousmane Sembène’s 1966 seminal film, Black Girl (aka La Noire de).
I’ve seen the film about a dozen times… but never on the big screen, and how I wish I could be present to see it tomorrow afternoon; alas, I will be on a panel at the Remixed & Remastered conference, which starts at 1Pm, and runs until at least 2:15Pm.
Underneath its deceptively simple story of a Senegalese maid, Diouana (played by the lovely Mbissine Thérèse Diop), and her relationship with the white French couple she works for, reveals a film rich with symbolism and complexities that are essentially reactions to, and analysis of, the cultural legacy of colonialism.
I’ve seen the film about a dozen times… but never on the big screen, and how I wish I could be present to see it tomorrow afternoon; alas, I will be on a panel at the Remixed & Remastered conference, which starts at 1Pm, and runs until at least 2:15Pm.
Underneath its deceptively simple story of a Senegalese maid, Diouana (played by the lovely Mbissine Thérèse Diop), and her relationship with the white French couple she works for, reveals a film rich with symbolism and complexities that are essentially reactions to, and analysis of, the cultural legacy of colonialism.
- 4/8/2011
- by Tambay
- ShadowAndAct
As I mentioned all last week, the Shadow And Act Filmmaker Series begins this week with a look at Ousmane Sembene’s 1966 seminal film, Black Girl (aka La Noire de). I hope some of you did watch it as requested (or have already watched it enough to contribute something to the conversation). It’s kind of useless if it’s just me, myself and I yacking away in a post. I certainly don’t know everything, so, this is meant to be edutational for all of us
So, let’s get into Black Girl, shall we? I’ve seen the film about a dozen times – so much that, in watching it again last week, I caught myself reciting Diouana’s interior monologue in unison with the character.
Underneath the deceptively simple story of a Senegalese maid, Diouana (played by the lovely Mbissine Thérèse Diop), and her relationship with the white French couple she works for,...
So, let’s get into Black Girl, shall we? I’ve seen the film about a dozen times – so much that, in watching it again last week, I caught myself reciting Diouana’s interior monologue in unison with the character.
Underneath the deceptively simple story of a Senegalese maid, Diouana (played by the lovely Mbissine Thérèse Diop), and her relationship with the white French couple she works for,...
- 7/27/2010
- by Tambay
- ShadowAndAct
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