User Reviews

If you're looking to see a mythic quest about a boy who, struggling to become a man, travels throughout his country, taking on quests and facing difficulties while searching out his father, Yeelen is a good candidate. If you're looking for all of this within the context of Hollywood western life, complete with explosions, a fight scene, love affairs, and something scandalous and otherwise unnecessary, then go see something fresh out of Hollywood. No, this is not a film made in the western tradition as a previous comment harped upon, but made in the national cinema.

Made in 1987 by a French film crew in Mali, Yeelen (or "Brightness") is a composition of old Mali myths put together to create a mythic quest of Nianankoro, a boy who travels to a distant uncle to find the second piece of the fabled Kore's Wing, needed to defeat his father who is set of taking his son's life. Throughout his journey, Nianankoro faces the daunting challenges of hunger and thirst, battling tribes, leopard-prophets, his father's wrath, and then his own final battle which eventually causes his death.

Yeelen is primarily an art film which represents an important part of Mali mythology and culture with subtle political undertones. By entering this film and judging it with the idea that it is a "western movie," you will surely not enjoy it. Instead, enter it with an open mind. Dump all preconceptions of Hollywood, open yourself to international film, and enjoy the power messages that Yeelen sets upon myth, culture, and art.

I found this Malian fantasy drama in the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, I knew nothing about it prior to reading about it, but critics gave it positive feedback, so I hoped for something enjoyable. Basically a young man named has been marked for death by his long-absent father, an evil sorcerer. The boy says goodbye to his mother and goes into exile, heading for the hills, where he learns the power and value of the magical gifts he will need to succeed in his struggles. He is journeying to find his uncle, a kind man who will be able to assist him in searching for his father. Along the way, the boy also utilises his own conjuring skills to benefit those less fortunate than himself, this includes saving a king from being removed from his throne. Starring Nianankoro Issiaka as Kane, Aova Sangere as Attu, Niamanto Sanogo as Soma and Balla Moussa Keita as Peul King. It is a very simple film, it seems to be much more about the landscapes and Komo rituals, I could only just find some kind of plot going on, there was only a little dialogue, and I guess I can see why critics describe it as "haunting", a fairly interesting fantasy drama. Worth watching, at least once!

Soulaymane Cisse directs "Yeelen" ("Brightness"). Opening shot: the sun heaving its massive bulk over the West African horizon. Closing shot: a son, carrying an egg, hobbling below the same.

Based on a Mali myth, the film likens the personal to the celestial. Niankoro, our hero, abandons his mother as his father, evil King-sorcerer Soma, once abandoned him. What follows is an Oedipal tale in which the son, whose own magical abilities are only now beginning to blossom, embarks on a journey to wrestle all power from his father. Niankoro even goes so far as to sleep with his father's new wife, before besting the King in a desert duel.

Niankoro is taught the mysteries of the Gods by his mother and uncle, who teach him sorcery and provide him with magical talismans. Their schooling is not enough, though. The boy must journey into adulthood himself. And so we watch as Niankoro goes out into the world, grows in power, feels the pull of sexual desires, and begins to become more and more like his father. He steals animals, bewitches warriors, defeats tribesmen, beds women and sets men on fire. By the film's end, we've witnessed not only a boy's journey into manhood, but a form of manhood that can only be actualised by usurping the father and claiming his perceived powers. In this regard, the film resembles Sophocles' "Oedipus Rex". There, King Oedipus became a sort of liminoid person, in a state of transition, stripped of personal identity. Like Niankoro, he then undergoes an initiation ritual or experience, whilst forever having on his mind the prophecies of the God's: that he is destined to kill his father and marry his mother, before being expelled from his Kingdom as a blind, old and crippled outcast.

"Yeelen" spends most of its running time likening its characters to mythological, larger than life characters. Soulaymane likens the light of personal knowledge and understanding to the material illumination afforded by Gods and Suns. Meanwhile, heavenly, divine bodies are likened to lowly fathers and sons, celestial cycles are likened to human cycles of birth and rebirth, and the film's central conflict between parents and offspring is shown to itself be a never-ending, circular tale. An infinite loop in which boys define themselves in opposition to fathers whom they believe to be barring them from pleasure. Today, all is itself Oedipalism, all is paternalism and aggression in the fear of emasculation.

The film ends with our perceptions of both father and son changing. The old man gains our sympathy, is weak and frail, while the boy has grown into that which he has replaced. Meanwhile, Niankoro's own son stands on the horizon, patiently awaiting his own rites of passage. He holds an egg and walks away, his own future about to hatch.

Aesthetically the film resembles the work of Jodorowsky, Kenneth Anger and perhaps Wojciech Has and Herzog ("Where the Green Ant's Dream" and "Cobra Verde"). Which is to say, it is a very esoteric film and will only appeal to those willing to read Soulaymane's imagery. Soulaymane makes heavy use of symbolism, treats sorcery and enchantment in a matter-of-fact manner and relies on many wordless passages. Audience members may find Soulaymane's aesthetic too provincial.

8/10 - Worth two viewings.

. . . who was portrayed in the docudrama THE LAST KING OF SC0TLAND. When a favored aide makes love to Amin's youngest wife in his biopic, the outraged husband has her filleted--literally. When YEELEN's 13th Century King Rouma Boll suffers the same loss of face at the hams of HIS junior consort, Attou, he merely exiles her with the seducing royal aide, journeyman wizard Niankoro. Which is a shortcut to understanding that the film YEELEN is much more similar to a HARY POTTER flick than it is to the "House of Blood" horror genre films that SC0TLAND, THE BANGBANG CLUB, WINNIE MANDALA and many other features set in a more contemporary Africa portray. Though the white subtitles used here are NOT very legible during the brighter daylight scenes, this movie is visual enough that you don't miss much from this technical snafu.