Afrique, je te plumerai

I saw this film and my main thought the entire show was, "What is the point?" The director is trying for such a surreal and disjointed film that he overshoots and makes one that is nearly incomprehensible. The topic jumps around from colonialism to neocolonialism, to book publishing in Cameroon, political violence, and stand-up comedy.

Scenes of violence or colonial propaganda are thrown into the film with the result being too jarring. Instead of feeling anything, you are just left confused as to what happened.

The title is drawn from the well-known french song, but there is very little to connect to that song other than a brief moment in the film and a vague theme of colonialism taking advantage of the colony. Since anyone watching this film would almost certainly be familiar with the basics of colonialism, the film doesn't really add anything to the discussion.

My review was written in April 1993 after a Lincoln Center screening.

Militant to a fault, this documentary on the history and legacy of colonialism in Cameroon is of obvious educational value to properly motivated American audiences. Director's idiosyncratic approach in the documentary form also gives it entertainment value.

Director Jean-Marie Teno, who also narrates, says he started out to do a film about Cameroon's publishing industry, but decided to extend his purview. Result is an often fascinating historical piece blending newsreels, interviews and staged scenes.

He gives a capsule history of the republic, occupied by the Germans before World War II and the French thereafter. It became independent January 1, 1960, but Teno has harsh things to report about its presidents and killings to illustrate their harsh rule.

France is the main target of Teno's criticism, as he points out that the former colonial power is still dominating Cameroon industries, especially publishing. He makes a plea for self-reliance, statking the familiar fear of cultural domination from abroad that can wipe out a nation's heritage. For American viewers, this ironically echoes France's frequent protests against domination by Hollywood and the English lingo.

Director's satirical approach is wide-ranging, even staging an interview with a TV magnate who callously rejects his request for production funds. Best segment features stand-up comic Aboubakar doing a mock press conference with very clever impressions of foreign journalists.

Though pic's focus is on Cameroon there's a segment paying tribute to assassinated leader Patrice Lumumba of the former Belgian Congo.