Das Licht

See this film! A gorgeous use of cinema from an African point-of-view. There is almost no music track which helps to emphasize the wide open spaces of the African desert. Very simple but effective use of reverse film technique for supernatural effects. A very stunning film for the adventurous filmgoer.

This fascinating and esthetically moving film should be seen by all who want to understand the deeper meaning of initiation and its role in a not-so-primitive society. It is useful if not indispensable to have some knowledge of sub Saharan Africa, and to realize that these Dogon and Peulh people not only have a detailed cosmogony but believe in reincarnation and know of stars we only see through a telescope. Their metaphysics were so powerful that one of the first Islamic universities, in Timbuctoo, was created for them. Aside from this, the directness and superior acting make Yeelen one of the Eighties' best cultural products.

Souleymane Cisse's groundbreaking feature makes no concessions to Western attitudes or tastes, but why should it? It's a truly African experience, made from a totally native perspective and set in a timeless, pre-colonial landscape, where sorcery and enchantment are merely extensions of natural law. The story unfolds in the epic tradition of true mythology, with the young son of a despotic tribal magician embarking on a fabulous quest for wisdom and enlightenment, which in the end will not only bring him face to face with his powerful father but usher him into manhood as well. There's a genuine sense of discovery to the film, both for its visionary depiction of Bambara tribal folklore, and also in the thrill of witnessing a local African production break into the international arena. Unlike other examples of Third World cinema this is no simple, primitive anthropology lesson, but a handsome, sophisticated motion picture every bit as luminous as the title suggests.

Its director, Souleymane Cissé, from Mali in West Africa, has expressed his desire to make films which are uniquely African in style rather than imitating those of the United Sates or Europe… To this end he relies on stories, true and mythical, told by old men and handed down through the generations…

A young warrior (Issiaka Kane), threatened with death by his evil sorcerer father (Niamanto Sanogo), goes on a journey where he learns the power of magic… The film inhabits a world of dreams, but not the kind described by Dr Freud…

However, the movie's basis in a mystical tradition does not render it inaccessible to Western audiences… The structure of the narrative, based on a quest for magical knowledge and power, is clear and firm, and the consistent pattern of imagery based on the elements of fire, water, earth and light (the title translates as 'brightness') is not specific to African culture… The film's use of landscape, yellow spaces of the desert, is one of its chief glories… The performers too have great charm

This is not a "proper" review at all. But I strongly feel that people should be forewarned about actual animal cruelty, and this film features an animal being burned to death and screaming in pain as it dies.

I can't score the film, as I did not watch it past the animal torture (which was the very first scene). I wish I had known about this content before I started the film.