I saw "Rue Princesse" (in French with no subtitles) as part of the Fespaco film festival which takes place every two years here in Ouagadougou. The cinema, which resembled a warehouse, had seen better days but it was cooler than I was expecting, the seat was more comfortable and there weren't swarms of mosquitoes, just the odd one.
I decided to sit at the back which was perhaps a bit of a mistake because the two speakers were way over at the front and the chap outside with the blaring radio all but drowned out what little sound there was. After about half an hour I figured out what was going on and from then on I started to thoroughly enjoy it.
This was the Côte d'Ivoire version of "Pretty Woman" meets "The Graduate", but much more enjoyable than "Pretty Woman" which I find to be one of the most unwatchable films. "Pretty Woman" is not unbearable for technical reasons, crummy acting or anything but the glib glamorisation of prostitution and the terrible characterisations. The happy-go-lucky tart who turns into a snotty rich bitch at the first sniff of money? Richard Gere's lawyer who makes a forceful pass at his long-standing client's girlfriend? Yeah, right. And it is a poorly conceived rip-off of "My Fair Lady".
However 'Rue Princesse' was fun. The style was typically naive which was a bonus for me because as a foreign film with no subtitles and low sound volume it would have been impossible for me to follow had it had the sophistication of a typical current non-blockbuster US/UK movie.
'Rue Princesse' was simply filmed using evocative locations; the acting had some nice touches and the plot moved along with some pace and humour after a seemingly slow start. It was amusing to be watching it amongst the Burkinabè as they cheered and clapped the scenes where the women gave the men their comeuppance. All told it was worth going to see and I would recommend it to any one else who might have an interest in West African cinema.
