Movie info via Slamdance:
Alhaji (28), an aspiring actor living in Los Angeles, is visited for a weekend by his younger brother, Sheku (25), a law student. Unknown to Alhaji, Sheku has come with a specific intention: to reveal the secret that he will be dropping out of law school and moving to LA to pursue acting, just like his older brother. Over the course of the weekend the brother’s relationship is tested and tensions rise as they converse about a variety of subjects with differing views and life philosophies. Alhaji pushes back on Sheku’s newfound dream as the facade of his own life begins to show. When bad news leads Alhaji to put himself in a precarious position, Sheku, the younger brother, comes to his aid and is a hero to his normally domineering older brother. Sheku leaves for the weekend and both brothers realize their relationship has changed for the better forever.
Review:
African Giants is a tale of two African American brothers who try to connect mentally, emotionally and spiritually during a long weekend in Los Angeles.
The movie is initially confined to the living room where the younger brother, Sheku (Omete Anassi) will be sleeping. Once the catching up is done, the central themes and conflicts established, the movie opens up to other areas where these elements play out..
For older brother, Alhaji (Dillon Daniel Mutyaba) there is his estrangement from his father, Sheku’s attempts to reconcile them, explain their father’s motives and psychology, their own sibling rivalry, and Alhaji doubts and worries about being an actor— a career that Sheku has always wanted to pursue instead of a more financially steady career as a lawyer.
Sheku knows that his place in life is aligned with his brother. They both need each other even though this need to be brother’s keeper conflicts with his need to be somewhat independent from the past and both older brother and parents.
The director, Omar S. Kamara, knows the conflict intimately, since the story has been culled from a memory journal he’s been keeping since his teen years. The conflicts and resolution, may be compressed, but they rise organically, the result of reconnection and bond- which allows the two talented leads to pull it all off with their bravura performances.
African Giants is talky but takes its time to develop the brothers fully. Most importantly there is a sense for the admiration, contempt, the differences between the authentic African experience and the African American one- and how these brothers try to assimilate these cultural differences into their beings.
African Giants gets a 3.5 out of 5 or a B+. It’s streaming as part of Slamdance 2024 which is part of the Slamdance Channel. The virtual part of the festival runs from January 22-28.
Credits:
- Year:
2024 - Runtime:
106 minutes - Language:
English - Country:
USA - Premiere:
World Premiere - Genre:
Drama - Subtitle Language:
English - Director:
Omar S. Kamara - Screenwriter:
Omar S. Kamara - Producer:
Leo Blumberg-Woll, Omar S. Kamara, Jordan Tyner - Cast:
Dillon Daniel Mutyaba, Omete Anassi, Tanyell Waivers, Josh Lopez, Kathleen Kenny, Scott Bender
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