Viva Riva!
Thoroughly modern and raw Congolese filmmaking
The story begins in the town of Kinshasa, Congo, in the middle of an extreme gasoline shortage.
Living true to the old adage that “desperate times call for desperate measures,” the carefree protagonist, Riva, steals a fortune in gasoline and returns to his petroleum-starved hometown to sell the goods, make a pretty penny, and live life like a king.
Riva is distracted from the plan from the moment he lays his eyes on Nora, the girlfriend of a big-time gangster, and determines that he will do whatever it takes to get her.
From Riva waiting on his gasoline deal to pay out, to his relentless pursuit of Nora, to trying his best to evade Cesar—the Angolan crime lord Riva steals the gasoline from—this film keeps the audience on edge through its entirety.
Fortunately, the subtitles do not make it difficult to follow the storyline. If anything, expect to become so enthralled with the characters that eventually you understand what is going on even without reading every word.
The action is ever going, and the film, which is raw and riddled with violence, sex, and crude language, offers a sense of realism and a window into life in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
“Our work on Viva Riva! was resolutely modern. The film dives into its depiction of tough situations so forthrightly that we hope it will help sweep away some of the old school perceptions of Africa and African art,” said writer-director-producer Djo Tunda Wa Munga. “Our aim was simply to work without fear or shame of who we are and the issues we face today.”
“I hope, especially for young people coming up, that this film will be a convincing argument that we can make it as a society, and that cinema can be part of our lives,” said Munga.
Viva Riva! was the winner of the Pan African Film Festival 2011 for best feature film, and took home six awards in the 2011 Africa Movie Academy Awards including best film and best director.
The film is the first Congolese feature film distributed in the United States. It will play June 10 at the Nuart Theatre, 11272 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles. Show times are: 12:30, 2:50, 5:10, 7:30 and 9:50 p.m.
“Happy Feet Two” is delightful, and it will make you very happy, and why not? Great music, penguins ‘getting’ down, outstanding animation, and an uplifting story, all in 3D.
In a curious way, it teaches us all, young and old, about our planet and how we’re all connected one way or the other. Through natural occurrence things begin to shift in the landscape of Antarctica and sea creatures great and small, as well as man have challenges they have to meet.
With June just around the corner, many women still hold the tradition of becoming a June bride, no matter what it takes. Hollywood offers its take on wedding preparations and all the love, hilarity and downright nastiness that goes with it.
Every now and then Hollywood takes a perfectly good tale and turns it inside out, giving us a new way to look at legends, and traditions. Sometimes these films miss the mark, but then you have movies like “Your Highness,” and “Hop” that are right on target.
When author Suzanne Collins created the “The Hunger Games” trilogy, which takes place in a post-apocalyptic world in the country of Panem, she simultaneously created social debates on race. The fictional country consists of a wealthy capital and twelve surrounding districts. District 11 is the home of Rue and Thresh, who are supporting characters in both the book and the movie, and it is depicted as an area near what had once been Atlanta, Ga.
“Greetings, Gentlemen. I greet you here on the bank of the James River in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and twelve. First, I shall thank you, the gentlemen of the Colony of Virginia, for bringing me here. I am here to help you solve some of your problems with slaves. Your invitation reached me on my modest plantation in the West Indies, where I have experimented with some of the newest, and still the oldest, methods for control of slaves. Ancient Rome would envy us if my program is implemented.
