Out of Africa

7 February  Xala (Impotence)

Ousmane Sembene, Senegal, 1974, 123 minutes. In this trenchant social comedy, Sembene follows the story of a corrupt businessman who marries for a third time expressly to improve his standing in the community. After a disastrous wedding night, he undergoes a series of embarrassing folk-remedies for impotence which continuously decreases his social position. Barely concealed by the film’s humour are the political and social drawbacks of neo-colonialism symbolized by the character’s condition.

14 February Yeelen  (Lightness)

Souleymane Cissé, Mali/France/Burkina Faso, 1987, 106 minutes. Hailed as Cissé’s masterpiece, Yeelen merges several Malian folk tales into a single magic-realist narrative about a young man on a quest to escape his evil magician father.  Beautifully framed against the arid landscape of Sub-Saharan desert,Yeelen shows a confident African filmic style of quizzical parables, arch encounters and, ultimately, a new self-definition.

21 February  Genesis

Cheik Oumar Sissoko, France/Mali, 1999, 102 minutes. Chapters 23-37 of the Bible's Book of Genesis is relocated in Mali and compellingly retold, starting when the world was reborn after the great flood and following the stories of Jacob, Esau and Joseph. Combining the Biblical story with relevant allusions to African history and culture, Genesis was enthusiastically received at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival.