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Lumumba - Special Edition (In French with English subtitles)

Lumumba - Special Edition (In French with English subtitles)

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Important subject matter, a bit hard to follow
Review: I would recommend this film, but couched in the warning that I found it a bit hard to follow. There are a lot of characters - the various political figures - and sometimes it's hard to keep them all straight. It's definitely important subject matter though - an interesting glimpse into the colonial forces that shaped modern Africa and the struggles that continue today in many of its troubled nations.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: An Excellent Attempt
Review: Lumumba is a movie worth seeing. It sets down as facts, a number of attributes about the character Lumumba, in terms of substance and style.
In a very striking story such as this, a very important and incredibly difficult task has to do with revealing raw facts while avoiding any elements of assessment or judgement of such facts by the crafters of the film. This allows the audience to do their own assessment of the raw facts they see. The events in the movie is presented from the perspective of Lumumba. We hear Lumumba's voice at the beginning and end of the movie, as well as a voice-over narration from time to time. This idea of the "Voice of the Dead" is interesting. In the story, Patrice, being human, didn't know (of course) what others were thinking and conspiring about. He had to read between the lines and put the pieces together. That is what one feels when watching events unfold from Lumumba's perspective. I very often felt an underlying silent tone of events, which made me think curiously and read between the lines. So in reacting to Soren Dayton's comment, I have to say that it is not a misstep even though the film does not outrightly present us with a glaring reason why Mobutu changes in the story.
In terms of production, continuity and editing of the film could have been better. However, Lumumba is an excellent attempt.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: LUMUMBA - A must see!
Review: LUMUMBA is the story of Patrice Lumumba's rise to power in the Congo in 1960 when revolution kicked the colonial power (Beligium, etc.) out. Here's the reason to see it: Africans speaking the truth about colonialism, African men dealing with the complexities of being a brand new government, seeing powerful revolutionaries having to make choices about how or whether to compromise. Seeing it makes you realize how we never see pictures that show Black people in charge, as competent, complex leaders, etc. So much of what we see is cartoons and caracatures. It also includes tenderness of Black family love.

It is also a very difficult film to watch: it is full of violence, not the gratuitous kind. It doesn't give women enough of a voice and I forgive it this point for all the other things it does.

Though LUMUMBA is not a "feel good" movie, it is inspiring, because I feel compelled to figure out how you could out-organize the forces who worked against Lumumba's fight for independence and unity. And because you see the potential of their vision, if only for moments, it reinspires to work towards that end. And it moves me as any well-executed martyr's story: we must carry on the work.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Captures Hope And Spirit Of African Liberation Struggle
Review: Raoul Peck didn't set out to blandly recount the highlights of the life of a profoundly significant African political leader (as opposed to Spike Lee's documentary of Malcolm X, which did). He infused his film with a spirit of revolutionary hope for all Africa, African people, and their allies around the world. Mr. Peck set out to tell the truth and to inspire.
It was a rare pleasure to see top quality film production values at the service of a black leader. Certainly something American cinema is loath to do. Patrice Lumumba is presented with dignity as a political scientist and a visionary.
Many thanks to Raoul Peck for this powerful contribution to the world. I eagerly await the film's arrival on video and dvd.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This Vizideo is the OPPOSITE OF WACK!
Review: There is only one word that can possibly describe this video- "WICKED MEGA NEAT!" BOOYA LUMUMBA! keep rockin on. this viddy is tiiiiiiiiiiiiiight. word to lumumba. thhis brother is the MAN

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Haunting Story, Excellent Film
Review: This movie is an excellent in its depiction of Mr. Lumumba. Strong, sensitive and committed to his people this movie depicted a strong man senselessly murdered after betrayal by his own countrymen. Mr. Ebouaney's performance was Oscar worthy! This is a must see movie.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Haunting Story, Excellent Film
Review: This movie is an excellent in its depiction of Mr. Lumumba. Strong, sensitive and committed to his people this movie depicted a strong man senselessly murdered after betrayal by his own countrymen. Mr. Ebouaney's performance was Oscar worthy! This is a must see movie.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great Film
Review: This movie is good for people to see the struggle that an african country has to go through in order to advance an how the one man who helped this country gain their freedom is betrayed in the name of independence. Watch it. My words are no match for the actual story.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Georgeous visual poetics, half-empty on meaning
Review: This movie is really, really odd. It doesn't point any real fingers at any group (except, very quietly, at the Americans), not even the Belgians, really. And it doesn't give any account for why individuals do anything.

Here are some questions that I thought the movie should address: (1) Why is "Congo" nationalism a good idea? Given that the idea of "The Congo" is an artifact of colonialism, why was that a necessary unit? This issue is raised by the difficulties with Katanga and all of the rest of the decolonization in Africa. (2) Why did people change? Mobutu seems to change, but I had no idea why.

The suffering of the Congolese and Lumumba was clearly acute. And this was gorgeously presented. But there is no moral substructure to make any of it interpretable.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: LUMUMBA
Review: Unfortunately this movie is the worst kind of popular tripe that has little if any truth in the actual character of Patrice Lumumba who was bought and paid for with cash arms , luxuries , and all the women , gin and hashish he wanted ....For more on these matters which are clouded by time and misrepresentations such as this film , please refer to :Katanga The Untold Story , an hour long documentary narrated by US Congressman Donald L Jackson or 46 Angry Men by the 46 doctors of Elisabethville , Who Killed the Congo by Phillipa Schuyler,Rebel ,Mercenaries, and Dividends by Smith Hempstone , or evenThe Fearful Master by G. Edward Griffith. It is said the victors write the history , but observers abounded in this period so the truth is availible.Good Hunting


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