Director: Abderrahmane Sissako
Year Released: 2006
Rating: 2.0
Or, The Continent of Africa v. Humanity-at-Large. A 'trial' is set up in Mali, with people voicing complaints against the West, the East, the World Bank and the IMF, with (actual) lawyers arguing the case for both sides - in between the court room scenes, there are clips of life, which consists of a little bit of a work and a lot of sitting around. Although the two lawyers bit is to try to argue 'both sides' of the Africa debate, Sissako and his movie are clearly on the side of (a.) more financial aid to Africa and (b.) forgiving the (massive) debt to the International Monetary Institutions. Africa does have a right to complain - it's been ravaged by whites for heaven knows how long now - but it does need a good, long look in the mirror as well: they've received financial support from governments, there's always some campaign to raise money by celebrities (Bono, Don Cheadle, that dude from The Wall who thinks he's a Messiah), medical students volunteer to help out in hospitals, and so on. Africa needs start by trying to heal itself, and this narrow-minded polemic isn't a good way to begin.
