By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.5 cats
Director: Ousmane Sembene
Starring: Anne-Marie Jelinek | Ibrahima Boy Bernard Delbard | Mbissine Thérèse Diop | Momar Nar Sene | Nicole Donati | Robert Fontaine
Original language title: La noire de...
Country: france, senegal
Year: 1966
Running time: 65
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060758/reference
Michael says: “Known as the father of African film, Ousmane Sembene made a bold directorial debut in1966 with the spare but withering commentary in BLACK GIRL. The original French title of the film is La noire de…, which means ‘The black girl of…’, as in ‘someone’s black girl,’ which implies ownership. Herein lies the crux of the conflict of this tale about a young Senegalese woman, Diouana, who is hired by a wealthy French family living in Dakar, to care for their children. When the family returns to France, they bring Diouana with them, but when she arrives, the children are nowhere in sight, and she is instructed to act as the maid, cooking and cleaning for the wealthy couple as they entertain friends who make insensitive, racist comments, and criticize Diouana when she behaves in ways they do not understand. When the children return, Diouana is expected to serve as both maid and nanny, causing her to think of herself as a slave, which she will not bear. Based on a real life incident, BLACK GIRL hits very hard, and is considered the first Sub-Saharan African film to attain international attention.
“The film examines themes of colonialism and racism in Africa and Europe. In fact, it takes place not long after Senegal achieved its independence from France. BLACK GIRL is told from the perspective of a Senegalese female, and shows a rare point of view from the voices of the colonized. Mbissine Thérèse Diop is elegant, proud, and defiant in her loneliness and alienation as Diouana, although her dialog and voice over is handled by Toto Bissainthe. In fact, all three of the leads, Diouana, and her Monsieur and Madame are voice by other actors. BLACK GIRL was a bold statement to begin the illustrious career of Sembene, which has included more recent stand-outs such as FAAT KINE and MOOLAADÉ. With only nine films, Sembene has had a powerful impact on the film universe. I look forward to exploring more of his work. 4 1/2 cats”