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Posted: Fri., Sep. 28, 2001, 4:36pm PT
Maangamizi -- The Ancient One
(U.S.-Tanzania)
A Gris-Gris Films production. Produced by Queenae Taylor Mulvihill, Martin Mhando. Co-producers, David Rosshirt, Casta Tungaraza, Leonard Merrill Kurz. Executive producers, Jonathan Demme, Joan Cunning, Steven Shareshian. Directed by Ron Mulvihill, Martin Mhando. Screenplay, Queenae Taylor Mulvihill.
With: Amandina Lihamba, BarbaraO, Mwanajuma Ali Hassan, Waigwa Wachira, Thecla Mjatta, Adam S. Mwambile, Kasaka, Chemi Che Mponda-Kadete, Yacinta Tungaraza-Msomi, Christa Kombo, Janet Fabian, Mona Mwakalinga, Zinabu Bure, Professor Samahein.
(English and Swahili dialogue.)
By DENNIS HARVEY
A quietly impressive drama, U.S.-Tanzanian co-production "Maangamizi" avoids falling into New Age glibness despite script's potentially pandering mix of feminism, Western psychology, African mysticism and repressed-memory catharsis. Long in the making (principal photography was completed five years ago), pic reps a rare wade into multicultural spirituality that's neither obscure nor oversimplified. Given all-black, femme-driven cast's slim marquee value, and less-than-obviously marketable themes, indie production won't be an easy theatrical sell. But grassroots appeal to specialized auds (particularly those inclined to follow the lead of Stateside "Color Purple" author Alice Walker, who's already given filmmakers a few choice promotional quotes) could lead to sleeper status, with four-walling and video self-distribution probably the best tactics.
In a women's mental hospital below Kilimanjaro, middle-aged Samehe (Amandina Lihamba) spends heavily medicated days staring out a window. She's kept mum since arriving here years before. Nor does the very laid-back staff even try to reach her. Arrogant chief medico Dr. Moshi (Thecla Mjatta) flirts with the nurses and (possibly) molests patients. Colleague Dr. Odhiambo (Waigwa Wachira) is more conscientious, but as second-in-command has no power to change the general benign neglect atmosphere.
Arriving unexpectedly for a volunteer stint is Dr. Asira (BarbaraO), who'd become intrigued by the East African psychiatric ward when she and Odhiambo were U.S. med school students --and lovers, it seems. African-American visitor's regal manner and exacting professional standards quickly irk the resident staff, not to mention casually sexist Moshi.
But Asira makes surprising headway with Samehe. Latter breaks longterm silence, thinking the female doc a savior sent by her trickster/spiritual guide Maangamizi (Mwanajuma Ali Hassan), an "ancient one" only Samehe can see or hear.
Pic wisely draws few stylistic or tonal lines between Samehe's visions and everyday hospital life, suggesting these different consciousness planes are equally "real" in the larger sense.
Non-hyperbolic approach pays off when it becomes clear that Dr. Asira, too, must think past Western psychologizing to confront and heal her own well-buried past traumas.
Screenplay (by Queenae Taylor Mulvihill) is unhurried yet concise in focus. Results sport significant conceptual overlap with exec producer Jonathan Demme's Toni Morrison adaptation "Beloved." In its smaller-scaled, less ambiguous way, "Maangamizi" locates a similar healing intersection between Westernized identity, traditional African religious belief, and regenerative matriarchal strength.
Critiques here of institutional bureaucracy, misogyny, racism, and Christianity's sometimes destructive missionary zeal aren't especially subtle. But feature seldom overplays them, its confident understatement a small miracle given myriad hurdles (scant location tech support, cast/crew malaria bouts, et al.) first-time feature helmer Ron Mulvihill and Tanzanian-bred vet Martin Mhando ("Yomba Yomba," "Mama Tumaini") weathered en route to completion.
Leads BarbaraO ("Daughters of the Dust") and Lihamba contribute strong work, former belying her Amazonian beauty with stern authority, while latter managing to maintain credence even when possessed by supernatural or family-abusive inner voices.
Bright local dress, handsome scenery, and Willie Earl Dawkins' color lensing provide leavening visual notes; diverse soundtrack assembled and composed by Cyril Neville is another well-judged plus.
Camera (color), Willie Earl Dawkins; editor, James B. Ling; music, Cyril Neville; sound, Gregory R. Beda, Joshua B. Graham; assistant directors, Alex Frayne, David Espline. Reviewed at Montreal Film Festival (World Cinema), Aug. 27, 2001. (Also in Mill Valley Film Festival -- World Cinema: Reflections of Our Times.) Running time: 112 MIN.
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From the FESPACO NEWS Newsletter Number 5 Wednesday, 28 February 2001
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MAANGAMIZI
THE ANCESTORS CALL
A woman in a psychiatric ward with her feet submerged in water, the footage shot at night in slow motion... Martin Mhando and Ron Mulvihill from Tanzania have risen to the challenge of leading us into her bizarre world.
Through tradition and modernity, psychiatry and ancestral methods, Samehe searches her subconscious for the root cause of her uneasiness, by hypnosis and purification she will discover the path of truth.
Clearly, the film brings out interesting and contradictory aspects, which are supported by a well-written script, even if its explanations are sometimes exaggerated.
Its excellent images are full of symbolism and the film is well edited, although, at times it uses cross fade a bit too much. One should note that the director employs an experimental esthetic throughout the duration of the film.
Of course, the sound is high quality and the music is excellent--all in all, a good job done by Cyril Neville for this feature film shot in Swahili and subtitled in French. These Tanzanian directors wanted to take us beyond reality...and they succeeded.
Catherine Gheselle
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I Indie Wire; Feb, 2001
FESTIVALS: Two Black Film Festivals Seize the Spotlight in Tinsel Town
by Yor-El Francis
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"Maangamizi," a Jonathan Demme produced film, which was ten years in the making, was also a festival highlight and definitely worth the wait. Like "Daughters of the Dust," the film is about lost souls and the unborn child; the story unfolds around an African-American doctor who works in Tanzania. Helmed by Martin Mhando and Ron Mulvihill, the film is a realization of both directors' passion for linking the past with the present.
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Mhando's Hollywood Dream
Comes True
The Australian
Edition 4 FRI 28 DEC 2001 Page 004
By: Louise Perry
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WHEN he was standing at the top of Kilimanjaro battling malaria -- and a tight budget -- the last thing Perth-based Tanzanian filmmaker Martin Mhando expected was to be blessed by the golden man from America.
But the chair of media studies at Perth's Murdoch University is basking in that special type of glory that only comes with Hollywood's Academy Awards.
Mhando's feature film, Maangamizi, last month became Tanzania's official entry in the best foreign language category.
Each country is allowed to put forward just one film for the awards, which are announced in March.
Co-produced by Mhando and his friend, American Ron Mulvihill, the $US1.1million ($2.17 million) independent film took six years to make.
Maangamizi is a Swahili word that translates into ``destruction''. In the film Maangamizi is the ``grandmother of all grandmothers'' who appears in the dreams of two women who come from vastly different backgrounds.
One woman is a patient at a Tanzanian psychiatric hospital, the other an African-American doctor who has travelled from the US to work at the hospital. The spirit of Maangamizi brings the two women together in a way they never thought possible.
Mhando is planning to head to Los Angeles for the big night. ``My wife says I don't go without her, so we will be packing up the family and worrying about the credit cards when we get back,'' he said.
Maangamizi has already won a swag of awards. In 1998 it was entered, incomplete, in the Zanzibar international film festival and won awards for best film and best actress.
The film won another best actress award at the South African Film Festival last year. It won second place in the Black Film Festival in San Francisco earlier this year and again won second place in the Black Hall of Fame awards in October.
Fifty-one countries, including Australia (La Spagnola), submitted films to the academy in the foreign language film category.
Academy president Frank Pearson said it was the largest number of films entered in the category.
Mhando said: ``Maangamizi will do her magic -- she's always there when we need her.''
Caption: Hollywood-bound:MaangamiziPicture: Megan Lewis _____________
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Arizona Star Net
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Tucson, Arizona Wednesday, 18 April 2001
International film fest begins on Thursday
Waigwa Wachira, left, plays Odhiambo, and BarbaraO is Dr. Asira.
A spectrum of international independent cinema is about to shine on Tucson.
The rainbow hits town Thursday, when the Arizona International Film Festival kicks off its 10th yearly event at several venues around town.
The annual festival brings more than 100 independent films from around the world to Tucson, including "Maangamizi - The Ancient One," a gripping representative of international film.
"Maangamizi," which won the top prize at the Zanzibar International Film Festival in 1998, will screen in Tucson Saturday.
It's a collaboration between Tanzanian Martin Mhando and American Ron Mulvihill, and unlike anything you'll find at Tucson's mainstream theaters.
Amandina Lihamba, who won the best actress award at the festival, plays Samehe, a troubled African mental patient who remains severely scarred from a nightmarish past and suffers from terrifying visions.
American Dr. Asira (BarbaraO), is a calm, rational woman who seeks to help Samehe and becomes involved in a personal spiritual journey that threatens the rational lifestyle to which she's become accustomed.
The women meet Maangamizi, a Swahili spirit that breaks down barriers between the conscious and unconscious. Maangamizi serves as a link between the present and the past, providing spiritual guidance for both women.
In order to cleanse her spirit and move on to the next stage in life, Samehe must confront her memories with the help of Maangamizi. She's taken back to her childhood, when a domineering father lashed out against her and her mother, twisting his rudimentary Christian beliefs to justify the abuse.
Varied in tone throughout, "Maangamizi" crosses over from reality to surrealism to abstract spirituality, always throwing in a new twist to keep the audience off-balance.
The crossovers can be confusing at times, but the film is never boring. Grammy winner Cyril Neville's subtle musical score drives suspense and adds to the mystique.
It's easy to see why Lihamba was acclaimed for her performance. She purges raw emotion in facial expressions, and her trembling voice seeps of genuine uneasiness.
The film is not rated, but it contains nuances that can be considered offensive to Western religion. Samehe's zealot father is a poor ambassador for Christianity.
At times, the film appears chauvinistic toward Western culture. As long as you can avoid being offended, "Maangamizi" can be a
consciousness-expanding experience.
* Contact Phil Villarreal at 573-4130 or prv@azstarnet.com.
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