Timbuktu (2014) User Reviews

Complex and yet accessible

[ahmedlimam · 8/10 · 24 February 2015]

For someone raised in Mauritania as I was, it was quite something to watch the first Mauritanian movie nominated for a Foreign Film Oscar. I saw it in, of all places, in a movie theatre in Rio de Janeiro, the first week of its release in Brazil.

The language of cinema is truly universal as you see people who belong to an entirely different culture react in a similar way to someone from that culture. Of course there are some references not easy to get, such as the one to music lauding the Prophet by Mauritanian female artist Dimi mint Abba which is heard in a key scene showing how absurd these Islamists' prohibitions are.

Unsure, also, whether people can tell when different actors use different languages (Arabic, Tuareg, Bambara etc.).

The soccer game scene is one of the best I saw this year on the big screen, and the one with the killing of astounding beauty.

Definitely a great director at work here, despite obvious limited resources.

Underlying fable of Jihadi oppression, Director Sissako's clarion call for freedom can be heard

[Turfseer · 7/10 · 21 March 2015]

On April 1, 2012, the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) and the Al Qaeda linked Ansar Dine, took over Timbuktu in the African country of Mali, and placed it under Sharia law. Director Abderrahmane Sissako was born in his mother's country of Mauritania, but spent most of his life in Mali, his father's place of birth. Sissako's main goal in "Timbuktu," is to expose both the harsh rule of the Jihadists along with their hypocrisy.

Sissako begins his story with images of Africa animist statutes being machine-gunned (off screen) by the newly minted oppressors of Timbuktu. Sissako's Jihadists are not simply one-dimensional villains. The leader of the lot, Abdelkrim, hails from Libya and must utilize an interpreter to communicate his harsh vision of Islam. Despite his puritanical orders, Abdelkrim is not averse to talking shop about soccer (which is banned in the city) as well as smoking cigarettes.

Abdelkrim soon realizes that his local conscripts aren't as enthusiastic about Jihad than he is. He attempts to coach one of his local soldiers to fashion a propaganda message before a video camera but the young man just doesn't seem to be able to say things like he means it.

While the Jihadists drive around in SUV's with machine guns slung over their shoulders, the administration of Sharia law proceeds at a snail's pace. This is probably due to the slow paced nature of life in that part of the world to begin with. I was expecting brutal large scale massacres along the lines of ISIS in Syria or Iraq, but most of the jihadists' violent actions are selective: a woman receives lashes for singing and a couple is stoned to death for committing adultery.

Sissako doesn't focus a great deal of time in fleshing out his victims, although a couple of his characters hit the mark: the odd but interesting Haitian female shaman who isn't afraid to thumb her nose at her oppressors as well as a local Iman who attempts to reason with the jihadists over one of their soldiers taking a young girl as his bride against her wishes.

Sissako's main character who constitutes the main part of the narrative is Kidane, a local herder who lives out in the countryside with his wife and daughter. As A. O. Scott argues, "He is a symbol of decency and tolerance, of everything the extremists want to destroy, precisely because he is an intriguing, fully rendered individual." I'm not sure if I agree with Mr. Scott that Kidane is "full rendered," as Mr. Sissako goes out of his way to emphasize the character's saintliness a little too often (yes we do come to realize that Kidane's daughter does mean just about everything to him).

Kidane does have an Achilles heel and Sissako perhaps suggests that Kihane's thirst for revenge may be endemic in the culture. After a local fisherman kills one of his prize cows, Kihane goes to "talk" to him, carrying a gun (his wife warns him not to carry the gun, but he ignores her). Sure enough, the argument between the two turns into a killing-whether the shot that was fired occurred during the struggle or was intentional-is unclear. Kihane ends up before the Jihadi court but probably would have ended up in the same situation, no matter who was administering justice.

Some critics have suggested that Sissako's style is akin to Brecht. Certainly a good part of his strategy is to make his audience aware of social injustice and exploitation in a part of the world most westerners are not familiar with. If some of his characters seem a bit sketchy, that's because Sissako has fashioned more of a fable than docudrama. Under the veneer of Sissako's tragic landscape, the clarion call for freedom continues to resonate.

Definitely Worth It

[JackCerf · 7/10 · 19 February 2015]

At the end of Woody Allen's Bananas, the leader of the successful Latin American revolution starts making crazed pronouncements: "The official language of the country will be Swedish! Everyone must change their underwear every day, and wear it on the outside so we can check!" That's kind of what happens when the jihadists come to town in Timbuktu, only its tragic, not funny. A bunch of mostly foreigners with AK-47s show up in a Muslim community, tell all the locals they're not Muslim enough, and oh, by the way, use the Qaran to justify taking anything they feel like taking, including marriageable young women. You come away with a sense of what it feels like for ordinary people to live through this, and it's not pretty at all.

A remarkable study in repression set amidst stunning beauty.

[JohnDeSando · 21 February 2015]

"Let me say this loud and clear. There is a world of difference between terrorist acts and the Islamic Shari'a. Islam is not only a religion, but a way of life. And at its heart lie the sacred principles of tolerance and dialogue." King Hussein I

A popular cliché is to refer to "Timbuktu" as the farthest, out-of-it-all place on earth, like "You can go to Timbuktu for all I care." However, in writer/ director Abderrahmane Sissako's remarkable film, Timbuktu, the world rests in miniature in the sand dunes of gorgeous Mali, where a Bedouin family can languish in the shade of their tent while a small boy herds their cattle and nearby fishmongers ply their trade by a welcoming pond. It is a world seemingly removed from stress, a paradise.

In the cell-phone age, no one is too far away and paradise easily shattered, as the natives use their phones to coordinate their herds and their lives. So do the Muslim jihadists, who use their phones to control the natives, bending them to their will on such mundane matters as wearing gloves and playing music. In a way, the low-key policing by the jihadists employing Shari'a seems to contrast with the notorious ISIS, whose control extends to burning and beheading.

All is relatively tame until one Bedouin's pregnant cow is killed by a fishmonger, and the herder murders in revenge. The Long-distance wide-angle shot of the two men in a death struggle is remarkably beautiful and ominous, like David Lean's memorable Lawrence of Arabia scenes.

The local jihadist authority follows God's law in this case while it takes a woman into custody for not wearing gloves and carries out murderous punishment on musicians. This tranquil paradise slowly becomes a hotbed of repression while the director still shoots lovely scenes that belie the suppression already reaching into the lives that seemed so far removed.

Underneath the obvious meting out of "justice" is the subjugation of women, almost as if radical Muslim orthodoxy had this prejudice as its cornerstone. This film drives that oppression home as few others have done because it makes it a quiet but persistent issue in daily activity. The very peacefulness of the living in Mali and the sweet sparseness of the mise en scene could almost make us think the radicalism is acceptable. But when you see men buried in sand and rocks thrown at their heads, you know life in the sand in not romantic.

Timbuktu is rated PG-13, a triumph in good taste as murder and subjugation are the dominant activities. A film that allows young persons to see the world's injustices through a beautiful lens is a film worth sharing in the hope of removing radical Islamists from paradise. Let them have their virgins and soon.

A joy to watch

[rubenm · 7/10 · 29 December 2014]

A film about the daily reality of Islam fundamentalism is a courageous project - even more so when the maker himself is a Muslim. For this reason alone, 'Timbuktu' cannot be praised enough. It will get plenty of international exposure, because this film is the first ever Oscar entry from Mauritania, and luckily it made the Foreign Language shortlist of nine candidates, out of 83 entries.

'Timbuktu' shows how Libyan jihadists invade Mali and turn the lives of the locals upside down. The Malinese are no longer allowed to play music or to smoke cigarettes, the women are obliged to cover their heads when in public, and sharia courts are issuing cruel and undeserved punishments. In spite of all this, the film is not at all harsh or bleak. On the contrary, most scenes show the Malinese living an idyllic life and trying to make the best of the situation. Some scenes are almost hilarious: the jihadists have to cope with serious language barriers to get their message across, they are unable to drive cars and even break their own rules by secretly smoking cigarettes.

Filmed in neighbouring Mauritania, the movie is full of beautiful landscapes, nice buildings and good-looking people. This is exactly what bothered me a little bit: sometimes you have the impression that you're watching a documentary on National Geographic Channel, showing the beauty of Mali. I can't imagine life in this dirt poor country being even half as peaceful and harmonious as is suggested in this film. A little more third world realism would have been appropriate, including the daily struggle for life of people living in extreme poverty.

Nevertheless, the film is a joy to watch, and contains some extremely beautiful scenes. One example is the scene of a football team playing a game without a ball, because it is confiscated by the jihadists. A perfect and original way to show how Muslim fundamentalism can be defeated, against all odds.

Mali citizens suffer violent, harsh jihadist rule

[maurice_yacowar · 9/10 · 5 January 2015]

The opening montage establishes the targets of the religious fundamentalists who have taken over the Mali area. The first is life: men firing at a frightened gazelle are instructed "Don't kill it; tire it." The second is culture: they shoot up a row of African sculpture, especially blowing off heads and breasts.

The local imam orders the soldiers out of his temple, preferring the jihad of prayer over that of weapons. Later he gently corrects the jihadists' leader, pointing out their divergence from Muslim principles like fairness, humanity, leniency, a respect for life.

But the jihadists persist. A man gets 40 lashes for playing the verboten football. So the lads gather to play a game without a ball, with remarkable agreement on which shots are stopped and which score. A woman gets 80 lashes for being participating in a home musical evening. A woman is punished for not wearing gloves even though she's selling fish. Women are ordered to wear socks in the market and men to roll up their pant legs. The jihadists are all in khaki and black, their faces usually hidden. The colours erupt and the faces bared in the bedouin's tent and in the music scenes.

That bedouin lives blissfully in the desert with his wife, daughter and a young herd- boy, the only family that has not yet fled the jihadists. He thinks they're secure from their extremism and violence. A jihadist officer has designs on the man's wife, so doesn't help when the bedouin faces death for the accidental death of the fisherman who killed his pregnant cow (named, with a nod to modernity, GPS). The bedouin stands trial, fails to win the widow's pardon and can't pay the sharia court's requirement of 40 cows blood money. That was the levy after he says he has only seven cows left. His wife dies with him in her rush to see him one last time. The film ends with the bedouin's two children running, their family killed, Their helpless flight parallels the gazelle's. They too will be profoundly tired if not killed, as the sharia marches righteously and murderously on.

As the blood levy demonstrates, the sharia court flexes mightily to serve its soldiers. A tortuous logic justifies why a soldier was allowed to steal away in the night and marry the girl her mother had refused him permission to marry. The officer lusting after the bedouin's wife steals an elaborate private dance, apparently with voodoo roots, at the local madwoman's. He even gets away with smoking.

There are scenes of breathtaking beauty, in tragic contrast to the suffering of the people. The lusting officer pauses to machine gun a pudendal shrub amid the dunes. In a stunning long shot the bedouin moves through the lake away from the man he's just killed, leaving his trail in the water as in the sand and in his now doomed life. After his gun goes off both men lie in the water, as if both are dead, which they effectively are as the bedouin faithfully accepts his plight as Allah's will. The bedouin's testimony is as movingly beautiful as the judge's justice is venal. This film remarkably combines aesthetic beauty and moral indignation.

Worth seeing but tough to watch and enjoy.

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 23 July 2015]

"Timbuktu" is a brave film from Mauritania that shows what it's like in a small African town after it's been taken over by Jihadists determined to enforce Sharia Law. However, I should warn you--the film is far from enjoyable and seems rather hopeless and it also lacks the usual resolution you'd expect in a movie. This is not a criticism, as giving it a happy ending would have been ridiculous.

The film shows a variety of scenarios in which harsh Muslim law is implemented. Having fun of any type seems illegal--no singing, no music, no playing soccer...nothing. In addition, a man kills another man in self-defense and is brought to this tribunal...and his family is now left defenseless without a man to protect him.

Considering the film's pedigree, it is amazingly professional looking. The music is excellent and haunting, the acting very natural. Overall, a sad but intense drama that shows a slice of life...a very ugly slice.

An Excellent Movie I Will Remember

[juliasf · 10/10 · 12 September 2014]

I saw many excellent films at The Toronto Film Festival. This one really stayed with me. I am not a person who can tolerate visually violent movies and this move respected me as an audience member. I cannot remember a movie with more captivating images which resonated, characters I continue to think about and visuals which prompted me to reconsider my relationship with history and other nations as well as with myself. That sounds kind of major. Suffice to say that I recommend this movie to anyone who would like an excellent story simply told which is both moving and a window on another world. The story is about creeping fascism and the way in which human beings resist heroically inroads against them which demean them. Despite the heavy subject matter, I found this film incredibly uplifting. This is a rare opportunity to see a film which depicts the complicated and sometimes frightening world we live in but with a sense of hope.

I tend to be a rom-com type. It surprised me to relish a film about war. It is not a film without heartache. It is a film which is both inspired and is inspiring. Most of the lead characters are not professional actors. This shocked me. I cry to remember some scenes, but with gratitude!

Well Done For What It Intended

[johanrattus · 7/10 · 2 March 2015]

There is not much positive or enjoyable about watching this movie, but assuming it accurately portrays how a rural African desert town is taken over and administered by conservative, armed Islamists applying strict Sharia law, it is a worthy eye-opener. No music, no dance, no ball-playing, no unapproved mingling of the sexes, etc. etc. by penalty of lashings, stonings, and worse. It is well-acted and produced, and gives the feeling that you've visited this small town in the African desert and unfortunately watched the local population, to whom we have a chance to bond, suffer. Disturbing and unsettling to think such places exist, but this movie puts a human face on those living under such conditions while allowing us to visit safely for a few hours. Good movies make you think, and this will make you think, sympathize, and appreciate.

The results of fundamentalism in Mali.

[Blue-Grotto · 10/10 · 12 October 2014]

A sprinting gazelle is cut-down from a truck by men with machine guns and a woman is hauled to prison for singing in the moonlight. Such events become routine in the wake of the 2012 fundamentalist attack in Mali. Arrogant and violent extremists administer horrendous and absurd punishments. They destroy grace and beauty with impunity. In a story based on real people and events, Kidane is a shepherd with seven cows. He lives a simple and happy life with his wife Satima and daughter Toya, their "little bird." They choose to stay in their meager shelter and small section of land rather than flee from the extremists. It is not long before they are sorry they did not choose to fly away. No major news outlet picked up the story in 2012. The launching of a new corporate brand eclipsed it. Hopefully the telling of the story here will put fire in human hearts to resist the terrors and injustices of absolutism. Seen at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival.

Good but a Bit of a Compromise

[bkrauser-81-311064 · 7/10 · 8 July 2016]

Timbuktu won the Francois Chalais Award at Cannes in 2014 and was nominated for Best Foreign language film at the 2015 Academy Awards. It's easy to see why. Not only is it a beautiful, serene and well- made film but it also has the fortitude to take on radical Islam in a brash, yet compassionate way. The fact that this film and director Abderrahmane Sissako has been readily accepted by the western world is not only evidence that audiences are willing to see films depicting extremism, but are willing to accept a more nuanced version than the caricatures we've conjured in out own minds.

There are many stories covering the breadth of Timbuktu, though the main and most powerful tale concerns Kidane (Ahmed) and his family. Kidane, his wife Satima (Kiki) and daughter Toya (Walet Mohamed) live on the outskirts of town as a family of cattle herders. For the most part they're far away from the oppressive world of the Ansar Dine occupation that took over the ancient city of Timbuktu from 2012 to 2013. The only encounters they seem to have is between Jihadist (and driver in training) Abdelkerim (Jafri) who covets Satima. One day a local fisherman kills one of Kidane's herd. From there the Jihadists converge on the family, administering their harsh interpretation of Sharia Law.

There are many side stories that decorate the edges of Timbuktu's moral parable. While these stories don't necessarily provide interesting characters they do provide some arresting images. An audacious woman known by the locals as La Chanteuse (Diawara) constantly employs subtle forms of silent protest against the city's occupiers. The simplicity of her protests provide the film with some iconic images. In one scene another woman is given twenty lashes for singing and being in a room with a non-relative man. As she sobs with every stroke of the whip, she begins to sing in a singular act of defiance. Another almost absurd aside includes a group of school children playing soccer without a ball since the sport itself is forbidden.

The Jihadists themselves are portrayed as foolish hypocrites; sneaking smoldering puffs of cigarettes smoke and conversing about their favorite soccer teams when no one is watching. When two of them try to enter a mosque with weapons, the local Imam (Cherif) curbs their excesses with sermons on humility, leniency, respect and kindness. Their reactions are often ones of puzzlement, unable to keep up with the Imam's learned discourse.

Yet it's moments like these that provide the film's biggest trouble spots. In an interview with Al Jazeera, Sissako explained that he's trying "to speak on behalf of people who are frustrated with this image...this constant degrading image of Islam." To that end Timbuktu is less of the humanist work like his previous Waiting for Happiness (2002) and more like a classroom lecture. Many have latched on to the film's zeitgeist and made comparisons to The Great Dictator (1940). One could no doubt take Chaplin's closing monologue and feel the same sense of erudite pretension. Yet by coming out and saying what the film's about, it stunts the film's natural humanity. We reach points of tragedy, not with a sense of loss but with a narrative coda. One that resembles and argumentative rebuke.

The film's discourse also feels unnecessarily chambered when you consider Sissako's larger point. It's easy to charge cruelty and hypocrisy yet the challenge is to examine why the world of Timbuktu is sullied by cruelty and hypocrisy. Issues of displacement, poverty, globalization, colonialism (all of which are familiar themes to Sissako) are completely absent. Nothing is left ambiguous and one could not help but think Timbuktu's international success is predicated on whittling away such themes for the sake of moral clarity. Even Kidane's home-life reeks of the nobility through poverty prosaism that hasn't been in vogue since Maxim Gorky died.

Abderrahane Sissako is certainly one of the most talented Cineastes coming out of Africa today. His visual grammar is on par with international contemporaries and his panache for emotional complexity makes him a torchbearer for Cinema's most renowned humanists such as Satyajit Ray, Masaki Kobayashi and Charles Burnett. Thus, Timbuktu ultimately feels like a compromise. The director's desire to connect with a larger (presumably) western audience seems to supersede the film's fertile narrative which is unfortunate. Yet by the merit of the film's imagery and some very potent religious themes, there is forgiveness, there is leniency.

"Where is forgiveness? where is leniency?"

[paul-allaer · 9/10 · 14 February 2015]

"Timbuktu" (2014 release from Mauritania; 99 min.) brings the story (fictional, by influenced by real events) of how the Mali town copes with the 'liberation' by jihadis. As the movie opens, we see the jihadis having a shooting practice by destroying the local wood statutes. The jihadis issue all kinds of rules ("smoking is forbidden! music is forbidden!"), much to the irritation of the local Mali population. We get to know one local family in particular, a husband and wife with their 12 yr. old daughter. They live a bit outside of the city center where the desert takes over, going about their daily business as best as possible. Then one day, one of the husband's cow accidentally destroys the fishing nets of the fisherman, who promptly kills the cow. The husband decides that he cannot tolerate this. To tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: first, it is a small miracle that a movie like "Timbuktu" could even have been made. Writer-director Abderrahmane Sissako shot the movie in Mauritania, which subs for Mali, but let's not kid ourselves. Mauritania is an "Islamic Republic", so it was no easy feat to shoot there either. Second, Sissako demonstrates again and again how much the local population resends the jihadis for uprooting their lives. There are several scenes in which a local man pleads with the jihadis ("where is forgiveness? where is leniency?"), to no avail of course. Playing soccer will cost you 20 leashes. Playing music comes at 40 lashes. Being in the room with someone from the opposite sex is another 40 lashes, and on and on. The fact that the neither side can understand the other (they speak Tamasheq in Timbuktu, the jihadis mostly speak Arabian, some also speak French or English) only makes the entire situation even more absurd. Second, while there are some shocking scenes in the movie, overall this is not a violent or graphic film. Almost on the contrary, in that the movie's editing and photography is done in such a way that it induces a false sense of peace and security. The photography in particular is pure eye-candy. Third, I have no idea where Sissako found these performers, but there are some wonderful performances, in particular from the wife and the 12 yr. old daughter. Bottom line: there is a good reason why this film is nominated for the Best Foreign Language Oscar, as it is a deeply moving film that will stay with you long after you have seen it.

The movie finally opened this weekend at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati, and I went to see it right away. The matinée screening where I saw this at today was attended okay but not great, although I'm hoping that the bitter cold weather is a factor for that. If you like a top-notch foreign film that provides a glimpse of what real life under jihad is like, you cannot go wrong with this. "Timbuktu" is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Pretty photography but the story isn't very tight

[Seraphion · 6/10 · 18 August 2015]

The story is really not a well knit one. It's not s tight that it wanders off and on all the time without real focus on one character. The characters which the movie's main story seem to revolve about are really there just as parts of the entire community portrayed in the movie. It's weird that there are many other characters that had significant amount of time yet they don't really contribute to the main story entirely. But we can really see great photography displayed in this movie. All the angles are played commonly but the view and coloration are done superbly. The acting overall is just at an adequate level.

Was expecting more.

[santiagocosme · 5/10 · 19 November 2015]

This movie was very average, and only deserves a very average review from my part. While the subject is quite interesting the movie never seems to get you in any sort of groove.

In Timbuktu, we are exposed to the depths of radicalism and jihadists taking control of a small village where men are suddenly banned from listening music, and women are forced to wear gloves while out on the street. Whoever fails to comply to these rules faces the most severe punishments.

While the movie might be a true reflection of life in TImbuktu, the movie is far too slow- paced for you to really get hooked and feel a true disgust for the actions of these fanatic extremists. The truth is that I went through the whole movie looking at my watch, and I was happy when the movie finished. Truly happy!

Still, I am able to recognize quality when there is, so on the flipside I will say that the scene where the inhabitants of Timbuktu play imaginary football is truly amazing (they are banned to play football so they do without a ball) !

Anatomy of barbarism

[searchanddestroy-1 · 11 December 2014]

As far as I know, that's the first - at least one of the first - films made about Islam extremists spreading terror and destruction in Mali. Those Islamists Nazis dictating Charria law to the poor people living in villages, killing men, women and children. Those human barbarians whose the behaviour is less than beasts' one. It was awful to watch such a film. A very good one, I point out. A very daring, courageous movie. I guess the director risked his life whilst making this tremendous piece of work. I love, I crave for this kind of picture, far away from the Hollywood crap for prick audiences enhancing super heroes. This movie deserves an Academy Award.

Don't miss it.

banalities of religious rule

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 13 January 2016]

Islamic jihadists have taken over Timbuktu and the surrounding area. They have forbidden music, dancing, cigarettes, football and many other things. Women are ordered to wear gloves and socks in public. Nomadic cattle herder Kidane lives with his wife Satima, daughter Toya, and son Issan. Many of his neighbors have left. Issan leads the family herd to the river. His favorite cow gets tangled in the fisherman's net. The fisherman kills it. Issan goes home crying. Kidane without all the facts go to confront the fisherman and kills him after a heated exchange. Kidane is brought to the court. The jihadists are not from the area and language difference is a constant barrier. The jihadi commander hides his own infractions while using religion to justify his orders.

If anything, this movie is not hard enough on the Jihadists. A lot of the movie is played for sly humor. The most obvious one is the people playing football without the ball while the Jihadists are not there. It is a slightly different way to poke fun at religious rule. Kidane does pose a problem. He is very much in the wrong in the argument. What he does is classified as homicide in almost everywhere. So the religious court doesn't come off as being unreasonable. Kidane needs to be innocent for the audience to see the court as being dictatorial and inherently unfair.

Hard to watch but a brilliant achievement

[veeckasinwreck · 9/10 · 18 February 2015]

I don't believe there is one frame in this film that is not gorgeous, that couldn't be displayed as a photograph at a gallery. The muted colors of the desert, the medieval architecture of the town, the tragically expressive faces always glowing in a magical light--all of it is almost painfully beautiful. The story is beyond tragic. By seemingly digressing into numerous anecdotes illustrating the quirks of the population, the director allows us to appreciate deeply the texture and social fabric of the community that is being poisoned by madness. We see in particular its effect on an extremely appealing but by no means sanctified family. This is one of the film's extraordinary strengths as well. No character is oversimplified; even the appalling jihadists are granted their humanity. I've seen "Boyhood" and "Birdman", the apparent favorites for the Oscar. "Timbuktu" utterly blows both those fine movies out of the water.

The impact of Islamic fundamentalists on the Tuarag people

[shakercoola · 7/10 · 24 February 2019]

A Mauritanian-French drama; A story about a cattle herder living a peaceful life in the desert with his wife and children who accidentally crosses paths with Jihadists who control a nearby ancient Mali town. Overnight, his world is shattered, and everything he loves and values is threatened. A beautifully shot film with an insight into the effects of a radical Islamist group on a small African town. It juxtaposes the cruel acts and stranglehold on people's liberties with the spirit and poetic images of the Mali people. The characters are flatly characterised and the central plot is superfluous to the power of the defiance and human dignity in the other stories it portrays.

A majestic work of art

[joris-nightwalker · 9/10 · 12 January 2015]

One of the movies that's still in the running for a "Best Foreign Language Film" Oscar nomination, is Timbuktu. Together with the Estonian Mandariinid it's one of my favorites for this year's Academy Awards, but I'm afraid only one of them will make it to the shortlist and neither of them will eventually win the Oscar. Not while movies like Ida, Turist and Leviathan are their competitors (although I think Timbuktu and Mandariinid are better than those three). The thing about Timbuktu that makes it such a beautiful picture, is its, what I presume, authentic representation of Muslims and the different views on Islamic religion. Spoken in a number of languages, from French and English to Arabic and a wide diversity of African languages (Tamasheq, Bambara and Songhay), Timbuktu shows Westerners a part of the world we almost know nothing about. Apart from judgemental and arrogant claims about the (religious) backwardness of many people there, be they Berber or Bedouin, many people here just don't know what to say about the Northern part of Africa. Director Abderrahmane Sissako gives us lots of stuff to talk and think about (for example the use of "jihad" as on the one hand an inner struggle (the greater jihad) and on the other hand an external holy war which is fought by mujahideen - the second jihad being the one we fear and loathe so much in the West). Not only that, but together with his cinematographer Sofian El Fani (La Vie d'Adèle) he manages to provide us with wonderful visual poetry and exceptional sceneries of south-east Mauritania. While it took some getting used to the narrative and the editing, I was full of awe after enjoying this utterly majestic work of art. Highly recommended!

Timbuktu's portrait in the desert

[martino-sanzovo · 7/10 · 12 April 2015]

Abdelkerim sees a bush of green grass in the middle of the desert, stops the car, takes his rifle and shoots at it. This is one of the most powerful moments of the movie. There must be desert in Timbuktu: no room for cultural activities, for entertainment, for socialization, for making your own decision, for green grass. There are no differences in Timbuktu: wooden sculpture can be destroyed in the same way as humans can be killed in the sand. It is difficult to keep your equilibrium while walking in this thick sand: it is difficult for local people and for animals but also for the jihadists (emblematic the fact that Abdelkerim smokes and everybody knows about it). Sissako enlightens us with his direct film, through use of shallow focuses and a balance between close ups (an extreme one on the dying cow) and long shots (an amazing one on the river at the end of the struggle between the shepherd and the fisherman). The scene of the football match with an invisible ball (any reference to Antonioni's Blowup?) is also very powerful. Can we anyway escape the crude reality with illusion? Timbuktu is certainly a movie that will raise questions in your head once you leave the movie theater.

Random of being born in certain countries

[pablogarciaecheverri · 8/10 · 1 May 2015]

In the middle of the beauty of Saharian Africa, a shepherd and his lovely wife have to face the punishment of jihad's authorities in Timbuctu, a town in Mali. Religious authorities control even the most intimate gestures in the middle of crude poverty. A moral dictator, as usual conducts himself in double standard. Jihadism, persecutes not only sensual expressions such as the beauty of songs and music played by the people in the village, but also any expression of individuality. Amine Bouhafa's, music compositions are profoundly moving as also the sound of the original language, a soothing tender sound. The random of being born in such a place simply changes the life and options of the characters, leaving very little to free will.

A revealing insight into a changing reality.

[tao902 · 7/10 · 27 April 2015]

The film portrays Timbuktu's demise since it came under the control of jihadists. Numerous incidents arise as fundamentalist Islam is forced onto an African society.

The slow pace of the film matches the rhythm of Timbuktu and gives us time to contemplate what was and what has become of an ancient city synonymous to Westerners as a foreign land far away. The spirit of the indigenous people is still very apparent despite the incursions of Arabic speaking fundamentalists.

A revealing insight into a changing reality. Within the film we see resistance from the indigenous people but the injustices continue, no doubt leaving most viewers angry.

A heartfelt plea for the world to return to sanity

[howard.schumann · 9/10 · 31 May 2015]

In the city of Timbuktu, the fundamentalist Islamist group Ansar Dine ("defenders of the faith"), wearing black flags to cover their faces, decimated shrines, Dogon wood sculptures, and World Heritage sites, considering them to be examples of idolatry, a sin in Islam. Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, Abderrahmane Sissako's ("Bamako") Timbuktu is a series of vignettes depicting the reactions of the people to the harsh laws of the Islamists seeking to impose Sharia law across Mali. Written by Sissako and Malian co-writer Kessen Tall in her feature debut, the film is a lament for the legendary land in which the director lived as a child, and a heartfelt plea for the world to return to sanity.

Set in Mali in 2012, the film begins and ends with running. In the opening scene, pursued by men in a jeep who are determined to break its spirit, a graceful gazelle runs across a pristine desert. The men are doing "jihad," periodically shooting at the animal with assault weapons as one of the hunters explains the strategy: "Don't kill it, tire it," he says, "That is how we win." The film centers on Kidane (Ibrahim Ahmed), a peaceful Tuareg herdsman who lives with his wife, Satima (Toulou Kiki), their 13-year-old daughter, Toya (Layle Walet Mohamed), and adopted son, Issan (Mehdi A.G. Mohamed) in a tent close to town which is now run by the Islamic police.

The family, like others, is forced to live under rules that prohibit smoking, video games, Malian and Western music, and football, though the Jihadists are hypocritical in flouting these same laws themselves. As Abdelkrim (Abel Jafri, "Juliette") and his partner Omar (Cheik A.G. Emakni) drive around the village intimidating people, Abdelkrim sneaks off to smoke cigarettes, unaware that Omar knows his secret. He also flirts with a married woman even though her husband is present, a violation of Sharia law. Though the laws apply to everyone, women are more often than men on the receiving end of the punishment. They must cover their head with veils and wear gloves whether or not it makes sense for them in their profession, and stoning and lashing are ordered for adultery and other crimes.

Based on an actual incident, a couple, found guilty of adultery, are buried in sand up to their necks, and then stoned to death. Not everyone supports the fundamentalist's rule, however. When the militants seek to enter the temple with their weapons, the imam (Adel Mahmoud Cherif) tells them: "Stop this. You cause harm to Islam and the Muslims, you put children in danger in front of their poor mother, you even hit the mother of two children without any good reason." He asks, "Where's leniency? Where's forgiveness, where's piety, where's exchange? Where's God in all this?" Abdelkrim has no answer but stares silently at the ground.

The central confrontation is between Kidane and a local fisherman (Amadou Haidara who kills Kidane's prize cow "GPS," when he became tangled in his fishing nets. Kidane, seeking revenge for the loss of his cow, wrestles him to the ground but his gun goes off and Amadou is killed, a crime for which. Kidane is arrested and sentenced to death. While the film does not poeticizing injustice, many visual moments are nonetheless works of art: Kidane walking across the water like a Christ figure after killing Amadou and Jihadists shooting into a bush that resembles a female organ.

Despite their slogans and bravura, however, Sissako depicts the terrorists as insecure in their beliefs. A young man, presumably a former rapper, talks to a video camera, attempting to describe his conversion to the militant form of Islam that the Jihadists represent. Even with prompting, the boy is unable to articulate his feelings and simply lowers his head, unable to verbalize the dogma. In a memorable scene, boys play a soccer game without a ball, running up and down the field kicking dirt as if to defy the authorities. Though Sissako does not raise any false hopes about the future, it should be noted that the Jihadists were driven out by French forces after one year in power, and, if the film is correct, much of their success may have been due to the resilience and inner strength of the women of the village who never tired and refused to run.

Well Done

[comicman117 · 7/10 · 30 April 2015]

Timbuktu is a well-made French co-production about the ancient city of Timbuktu, set in modern times. The relationship between the characters, particularly the family, is very strong in the film, and it works because of that. At the same time, the film is not especially engaging and it does include some brutal scenes. Overall, I'd say it's a mixed bag, even if I do admire what it's trying to do.

The film follows the people of Timbuktu who are powerless against Jihadists who want to control their fate. Many forms of different entertainment have been banned by these oppressors: music, laughter, and soccer, among others. The women are especially powerless, but they still manage to have some resistance against the evil leadership, and try to be independent, despite the laws imposed on them. Although the film has some other minor stories, it's essentially about a family led by a cattle herder named Kidane, his wife, Satima, their daughter Toya, and a twelve-year old shepherd named Issan.

What I liked about Timbuktu was the relationship between the father, his wife, and their daughter. Each of these three characters feel realistic, especially given the setting of the film. Neither Kidane nor Satima are particularly hard on their daughter, Toya, but they still expect much out of her. So when she gets into trouble in the film, Kidane is not proud. I especially liked the scene where Satima is telling Kidane that she's wants to leave the country, and Kidane reminds her how utterly pointless that idea really is. It's a strongly acted scene that helps to give more development to these already realistic characters.

The opening of this film, a five minute sequence that features no sound, is of the Malian men hunting a deer and doing other hard jobs near their city. It's a nice sequence that helps to give the audience an idea of what the film their watching will be like. Another sequence I liked that included a musical score, involved a group of African people playing soccer, until they are caught by some of the members of the Jihadists. Another sequence I liked involved a local man walking through a small river where the camera is set up a large distance in front of him, an interesting choice of direction, especially given what the scene is about. This film doesn't shy away from the violence of the country. Whippings, rocks being thrown at people's heads and other violent acts are shown in the film, making it more realistic.

However, for as much as I might praise the movie, there were a number of things there were other sequences that did not work for me, for example, when the African is getting interrogated for illegal playing soccer in the city, it just didn't seem to go anywhere afterwards, and the character is quickly dropped. Also, the sequence where a cow is killed by a fisherman, although interesting, is seemed to last too long, as the camera cuts closer and closer to the cow as it is dying. Timbuktu is a well-made movie, but some people might find the film hard to sit through, given that there are a few disturbing scenes. I, however, found it to be tame compared to other violent movies. It's a well-meaning picture, that isn't especially fascinating or entertaining, but you may find it enjoyable.

Very poor cinematography despite the award

[unbiased_movie_critic · 2/10 · 8 June 2018]

To me the visual of the film is extremely insipid, savorless, amazingly dull and plainly disappointing! And in that area, someone will have to explain to me how cinematographer Sofian El Fani, who once again reveals himself as an amateur, actually did get a credit for this movie. Very rarely do we see technical challenges. The movie's visualization is so technically repetitive and mind-numbing that it makes the whole movie extremely boring (how many viewers did say they were checking their watch!). Timbuktu's stunning sandy deserts, lakes and caved houses, which should have been splendidly rendered, are regrettably reduced to being consistently filmed with the same elementary shots over and over. It could have been merely OK for a documentary (which the movie was supposed to be BTW). What makes the filming approach so tedious is that Sofian El Fani fails to convey emotions through camera angles (kind of reminded me of La vie d'Adèle where El Fani makes such an excessive use of close-ups that it becomes unbearably repetitive to the viewer).

So unless there was a political move to credit Tunisian film crew members, such as El Fani, (Original Score award to Amine Bouhafa was well deserved though), there is no technical basis whatsoever for him receiving this award for best cinematography. Globally, this film probably moved Western World viewers -- that's why it actually got credited--, but it no manner does it contribute to cinema or art.