Similarities Between Blood Diamond And The Constant Gardener

Contemporary Africa is shown as a violent and dangerous place, were the vulnerable are exploited by greedy and unscrupulous people and enterprises. Older African films depicted a much more untouched and peaceful Africa, however this pristine area has now suffered much exploitation as a result of the western influence. The directors have used a variety of film techniques in order to distinguish this new trend of Africa films from the elder ones.

In the beginning of filming when directors wanted to portray a black character directors would have white actors in black face. The role the actor was playing while in black face would often playing characters who had negative characteristics and personality. This is equivalent to what Hollywood films are doing to the continent of Africa, highlighting every negative aspect about her but not bringing to light everything beautiful about it. Rochelle Burgess writes how she was bought to tears after watching only one half of Adam Brace’s play They Drink It in the congo, in the play she writes that “Black men were portrayed as violent and full of rage and as sexual predators, and black women were portrayed as victims and silent workhorses.” The congo was portrayed as a broken country to which white leads in the play were trying to help improve their living conditions, she then continues to say “I watched as black characters were used to prop up the self-exploration of white leads.” Plays and films like these help to prop up the illegitimate disgraced picture of Africa that most Americans believe is

For years now, the cinematic (Hollywood narrative films) worlds has based all sorts of their different films on Africa and its people, but are these stereotypical representations on Africa showcased in all films? Various genres such as comedy, drama, horror and even science-fiction have showcased African people showing us world cinema’s typical and ideal representation of an African character, portraying their culture poorly, negatively and violently, but not all films portray African characters negatively with no dominance. Though globally seen as poor people who live in poverty, that’s right, I said poverty, most children grow up to see Africans as just that. Poor and unfortunate. The typical African culture is generally assumed to be of poor and unfortunate civilization, undermining any positive influences that could possibly be made to Africa and its people. They are stereotyped as worthless outcasts, although films such as Tsotsi and Remember the Titans take these depictions of Africa and throughout the films, “Transform” them instantaneously in the films Tsotsi and ATL where aesthetic features such as costume, setting and mise en scene differentiate the representation of Africans to the reality in the film.

A stereotype can be defined as a “representational practice” that categorizes and segregates an individual or group of individuals based on their differences, often associating him/her with a positive or negative label, such as, by outcasting an individual based on their racial and ethnic backgrounds (Hall 225). The image of Africans as savages is a common stereotype seen in American and European films that show Africans as barbaric and primitive creatures. Specifically in these films, a savage is an African who is constantly portrayed and characterized as a worthless, lazy, blood-thirsty, cannibalistic beast “who probably deserves to die” (158). This is because Africans don’t fit the stereotypical cookie-cutter mold of what the directors consider “normal” (i.e. being a great white hunter), and therefore, they are immediately seen as insignificant and worthless individuals (158). Over time, as African produced films start forming an appearance in Hollywood, the perception of Africans slowly changes. In part because African directors represent their race as lead characters who are independent and smart. Africans are no longer seen as savage creatures, but instead, as actual human beings who crave to have their voice heard in the

These films were meant to raise questions and critique colonial practices and depict transnational experiences represented through a variable use of camera techniques that may take on guerrilla filmmaking practices of Third Cinema, but they can also become part of a national cinema project changing the funding available for different cinematography practices. The different eras shown throughout the international film industry all show the mentality of that particular time while also being able to affect audience members in modern times as many issues touched upon in these eras are timeless and easily relatable on multiple levels. The film industry is able to crossover to every country as no matter the language of the film, the values shared through the film itself is what is memorable to the viewers and even though they might criticize certain cinematography or directing choices if the narrative is strong and relatable that film will not be

The African culture is something to be amazed by. This is knowledge I acquired from personal experience while living in Africa. Sadly, however, it is also home to traditional ways which oppress and discriminate against women. Especially in smaller villages, where the ancient culture is more prevalent, women are classed inferior to men. The character Happy Bapetsi, a bright and young Batswana woman, witnesses gender discrimination everyday in her professional life. This limits her future gravely and allows for injustice to prevail in a modern society.

In the film Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The Danger Of a Single Story filmed July of 2009 at Ted Global, speaker Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, a Nigerian native, discusses the problems that occur when someone stereotypes another racial/ethnic group. Chimamanda speaks on how being from Africa, she is often stereotyped as being poor, less intelligent, and seen as a beast. She also argues that the stereotype of Africans is not true and does not accurately describe their entire race.

Negative stereotypes of African Americans in particular have been deeply ingrained in Anglo American cultures since Africans were brought into the country in chains (Lester, 1996, p. 21). The stereotypes served an essential purpose - they justified Anglo enslavement of Africans.

For generations, Hollywood has dominated the global movie scene. In many countries American films capture up to 90 percent of the market (Campbell 201). Cultural studies is in fact the study of the ways in which culture is constructed and organized and the ways in which it evolves and changes over time. More recently, as globalization has started to intensify, and the United States government has been actively promoting free trade agendas and trade on cultural products, which led Hollywood into becoming a world-wide cultural source. As the foreign film market in the US continues to shrink, American distributors play increasingly larger roles as cultural gate-keepers. However, there has been controversies over the way Hollywood portrays other countries, their people, and cultures, especially Hollywood’s portrayal of Africa, Middle East, and Asia. Internet Movie Database suggests that they are roughly 1,367 films that mention the African continent. The problem is not about the mention of the continent, but about how the continent is constantly portrayed. The controversies around media images and themes depicting the way in which the ‘developing’ world is portrayed, have been going on since the mid-1970s (Cohen, 2001, in Manzo, 2006).

There are disagreements about how mass media portrays African culture and general information pertaining to Africa. Some argue that western reporters have been selective in their reporting of African news, focusing on negatives and leaving out achievements and contributions to the international community. According to Ebo (1992: 15), “the negative portrayal of Africa by American media is deliberate and systematic process that is created and sustained by the bias in the way American media select foreign news stories.” It is not only mass media that practices such actions, but also the entertainment industry like Hollywood. Examples of these actions can be seen when movies depict African culture. They portray African homes as inhospitable and uncultured huts, or that everyone in Africa lives in a mud house in the middle of nowhere. Examples of such scenes can be seen in the movie “Tarzan The Ape Man” where the Native Africans are shown to be savages and inhuman creatures, to be used, while their living environment was just a bunch of straw huts. There is a also clear image of this in “King Solomon's Mine”. In

The following essay will compare and contrast two cultural productions that represent and depict Africa. The films “Coming to America” by John Landis and “The Gods Must Be Crazy” by Jamie Uys have similarities and differences according to the meaning of Africa. The similarities of these films are the use of the current English language, religion, comedy relief, traditions, and interpretation of Africans “single story”. The differences of these films are the time period, locations, clothing, articulation, and reputation. The cultural productions of “Coming to America” and “The Gods Must Be Crazy” can be compared and contrasted because both films exhibit a relationship that depicts how we think about Africa not as a place, but as people as a whole in the modern world.

The thematic similarities between Sissako’s film and Bhabha’s essay go beyond their contemporary post-colonial studies. Homi Bhabha was born and raised in India, got his PHD in England, and is now teaching at Harvard University. Abderrahmane Sissako was born in Mauretania, brought up in Mali and trained as a filmmaker in the Soviet Union. These days he lives in France and travels back to Africa to make films. They both seem to have felt the pain of betrayal that comes by living in a ‘multicultural’ nation, and for that they both can be considered a product of the multicultural processes about which they develop their work.

Written and directed by Ousmane Sembene, a novelist turned filmmaker, Black Girl tells the story of a young African woman named Diouana who leaves her home in Senegal with her French employer, hopeful the work and opportunities offered by France will lead her to an improved life. What begins as an optimistic journey soon reveals itself a grand disappointment as Diouana realises her role as the children’s caretaker has morphed into that of a maid and France reveals itself to be a prison rather than a liberation. Between cooking, cleaning, taking care of the children and enduring constant disrespect from her employer and their friends, Diouana’s hopeful nature is dulled as she starts feeling the weight of her isolation and alienation. Through the use of his carefully chosen and curated settings, Sembene comments on the questions of postcolonial identity and displacement, offering to his audience Diouana’s journey as an example of the inner turmoil of defining African identity while still under the influence of colonialism.

The movies Hidden Figures, and Bend it like Beckham, directed by Theodore Melfi and Gurinder Chadha respectively, both explore the dangers that are inherent in a marginalised society. Each text demonstrates that hope for change is needed in society as it can build the momentum for an individual to strive. Through these texts, it is observed that people have no conscience about harming others until they learn the truth about their circumstances. This is depicted by the way in which Jess’ coach Joe behaves after learning about her cultural expectations in Bend it like Beckham. Similarly, this is shown in Hidden Figures by Mr. Harrison. Both directors emphasise that the abuse of power leads to corruption and this can be seen through the segregation between the black and white people in Hidden Figures and the way in which cultural values overrule the lives of the Bhamra’s in Bend it like Beckham. Both characters highlight the importance of creating opportunities rather than seeking it, this is shown when Mary Jackson goes to court for educational rights in Hidden Figures and in Bend it like Beckham when Jess stands up to her father who appears to be patriotic about his culture. The resolutions to both texts justify that determination comes from within and that though many factors can outweigh a person’s ability to triumph, consistency can lead to rewarding results. Through the use of cinematic techniques we are able to further increase our understanding of perseverance

In his book, Mistaking Africa, Curtis Keim argues that the American people have a limited specific knowledge of the world’s second largest continent, Africa. The book claims that the general understanding one develops from a study of American language and media about Africa is one that characterizes the continent as a primitive place in need of western assistance. Keim contends that television shows, movies, newspapers, magazines and even amusement parks provide inaccurate depictions of the continent to the average American eye. However, Black Panther, a movie based on the Marvel comic-books of the same name attempts to step out of this mold and portray a true image of the continent. Despite the presence of the obvious white executives and producers from Disney, the movie is composed of a predominantly black cast, a black director and a black screenwriter.