And So Angels Die. Not a fan. The only thing I got from this movie was brushing up on my French. First of all, the filming was very low budget but not in a skillful way, but rather an I-found-a-camcorder-from-the-90's-in-my-mother's-basement-and-I-barely-know-how-to-use-it way. I won't blame the acting too much because the dialogue and sequence of events were not easy to follow. The jumps from past to present and back were confusing since you didn't know which characters you're following. Yes, in some of the scenes Mory is called by name, but the fact that his father was also named Mory makes it unclear. Overall I found this film very dull.
From an academic standpoint, I suppose I can draw some comparison to Black Girl. The most evident theme to me was the misconception of the quality of life from Europe to Africa. African families are proud to send their families away to a better life and to make a fortune to support the family. They do not realize the cost. It is difficult to find work in Europe, especially for Africans, and the work that is available to them is often demeaning or oppressive. Neither Diouana nor Mory were able to support their families from abroad, and as a result they were thought ill of by their families. This diaspora only results in being alienated by both cultures. It drove Diouana to suicide and Mory to alcoholism and being separated from his kids, I theorize.
- steffie
Steffie,
ReplyDeleteRead Mermin and rethink your privileged critique about the "low budget" nature of this film.
Spring
I completely agree with you, I also found the film very dull. Ninety percent of the films we have watched have caught my attention, despite the fact that it's 8:00am, however I caught myself nearly dozing off several time while watching And so Angels Die. Although the film was "low-budget", I believe it could have been presented in a better format, or at least with a clear focus. At times I had to question what I was watching and what was going on in the film, even though I was paying attention the whole time. I think we're on the same page that this was one of the least favorites of semester.
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