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Therese N'Bissine Diop,
Anne-Marie Jelinek,
Robert L. Fontaine
:
Ousmane Sembene
see all cast/crew...
: New Yorker Video
: Drama, Foreign, France, Africa, Senegal
: 80 min.
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The first major work of Senegalese director Ousmane Sembene, this 1966 film is widely recognized as one of the founding works of African cinema. Diouanne Therese N'Bissine Diop, a young Senegalese woman, is employed as a governess for a French family in the city of Dakar. She soon becomes disillusioned when the family travels to the Riviera, where her comfortable duties as a nanny in a wealthy household are replaced by the drudgery and indignities of a maid. In a series of escalating confrontations with her mistress (Anne-Marie Jelinek), Diouanne is painfully reminded of her racial identity. She is caught in the tension between the French upper-class and post-colonial West Africa and finds herself alienated from both worlds. Along with narration and dialogue in French, this film also shares the sparse tone and visual style of French cinema of its period. Nevertheless, the influence of Sembene's European counterparts does not diminish this subtle but striking examination of racial and cultural prejudice. ~ Jonathan E. Laxamana, All Movie Guide
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| "Black Girl/Borom Sarrett": 40 Years Ago in Senegal
by UnpaidCritic
October 6, 2007 - 1:08 PM PDT
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| This film is a gem that will take you to the inner life of a struggling Senagalese domestic in France. Rather than living the glamorous life she imagined, she feels trapped by illiteracy and the harshness of her mistress. The waning days of French colonialism are all around her, and in her home country rebel activity is ascendeant. Unfortunately, she doesn't make the leap but falls between the cracks. If you want a film that will have you thinking about it for days and that will contribute to your soul, this is the one. |
| A disturbing look at 1960s French culture
by Garlynn
March 22, 2006 - 3:26 PM PST
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1 out of 1 members found this review helpful
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This film is not only a good story about a black girl who travels from Africa to France as a housemaid for a French family, it's a very disturbing look at how poorly white French families treated their black help during the 1960s, and, more in general, at what it meant to be black during that time period, even if black meant from Africa, not black-American.
Highly recommended. |
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GreenCine Member Rating
(Average 7.00)
19 Votes
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