Introduction I RECOVERING THE AFRICAN PAST Out of Africa (1985) - Yaaba (1989) - Keita! (1995) II FIGHTING COLONIALISM Sambizanga (1972) - Flame (1996) III THE STRUGGLE FOR MAJORITY RULE IN SOUTH AFRICA The Gods Must Be Crazy (1980) - A Dry White Season (1989) - Mapantsula (1988) - Fools (1997) IV BETRAYALS OF INDEPENDENCE Kongi's Harvest (1970) - Xala (1974) - Tableau ferraille (1997) - The Blue Eyes of Yonta (1992) V THE EXPLOITED & NEGLECTED PEASANTRY Finzan (1990) - Kasarmu Ce (1991) VI BETWEEN THE AFRICAN MASS MARKET & INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION Kini & Adams (1997) - La Vie est belle (1987) - Epilogue
Josef Gugler is Professor of Sociology & Director of the Center for Contemporary African Studies at the University of Connecticut
...provides a succinct and thoughtful introduction to fifteen of
the most widely-known films produced in Africa over the past four
decades, including Xala, Keita, Finzan and La Vie est belle.
*RESEARCH IN AFRICAN LITERATURES*
...not only a great treat for movie fans but a book that will
enlarge any reader's horizons.
*NATIONAL CATHOLIC REPORTER*
...the book that many have been waiting for. Josef Gugler has
composed a lively and loving handbook for African film aficionados
and for those willing to be converted. Erudite without being
stuffy, informative without being pedantic, Gugler condenses years
of viewing and critiquing films into a dense but accessible
compendium of stimulating observations. The format, replete with
photos, film frames, reproductions of film posters and intriguing
side notes, is extremely attractive. The cover design welcomes
readers with the faces of the two smiling children from Yaaba,
which Gugler analyzes early and at length. The text is arranged in
an orderly manner in six categories, primarily historical, and is
preceded by a Table of Contents followed by a briefly annotated
list of the main films, humorously entitled '17 films in 17
sentences'. An author's preface is followed by a useful chart of
Basic Indicators for African Countries - all countries cited are
south of the Sahara with some in this region not included. A simple
map provides a further reference for the discussions of films
spanning the continent.
*AFRICAN RENAISSANCE and INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF AFRICAN
STUDIES*
... an easy read, suitable for those in tertiary institutions and
the general reader... this study poses a critical and urgent
question to African and Africanist scholars about the fate of
African arts and cultures in the 21st century in the face of a
rapidly globalising world where capitalism and market forces
increasingly determine artistic and cultural production and
circulation.
*AFRICAN REVIEW OF BOOKS*
... excellent reading for students and scholars of African cinema
looking to understand the socio-cultural contexts of the African
films discussed therein. -
*MODERN AFRICAN STUDIES*
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