The Burial of Kojo

Last updated
The Burial of Kojo
The Burial of Kojo.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Blitz Bazawule
Written byBlitz Bazawule [1]
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyMichael Fernandez [1]
Edited byKwaku Obeng Boateng [1]
Music byBlitz Bazawule [1]
Production
companies
  • Wheel Barrow Productions
  • Africa Film Society [1]
Distributed by
Release dates
  • 21 September 2018 (2018-09-21)(New York)
  • 31 March 2019 (2019-03-31)
Running time
80 minutes [1]
CountryGhana
Languages

The Burial of Kojo is a 2018 Ghanaian drama film written, composed and directed by Blitz Bazawule. Produced by Bazawule, Ama K. Abebrese and Kwaku Obeng Boateng, [5] [6] it was filmed entirely in Ghana on a micro-budget, with local crew and several first-time actors. [7] The film tells the story of Kojo, who is left to die in an abandoned gold mine, as his young daughter Esi travels through a spirit land to save him.

Contents

It had its world premiere in New York on 21 September 2018, at the Urban World Film Festival, [8] [9] where it was recognized as Best Narrative Feature (World Cinema). [10] The film received nine nominations at the 15th Africa Movie Academy Awards and won two, including Best First Feature Film by a Director. [11] It is distributed by ARRAY and was released on streaming service Netflix on 31 March 2019, [3] [4] making it the first Ghanaian film to premiere in selected countries worldwide, on Netflix. [12] [8] [13]

Plot

Esi recounts her childhood in rural Ghana, where she lives in a village in a lake similar to the real-life village, Nzulezo, built on stilts, with her father Kojo and her mother Ama, who supplies most of the family's small income through sewing. Kojo grew up in a large city but fled to the village after a tragic event, feeling that "only water could cleanse the past." Esi is close to her father, who takes her around the lake in his boat and tells her stories whose beginnings only make sense if you know their endings. An unexpected visitor — an old blind man from "the realm in-between" where "everything is upside down" — arrives in the village and entrusts Esi with a sacred white bird that he says is being hunted by the crow who rules the land in-between.

Soon thereafter, the family receives another unexpected visitor — Esi's uncle Kwabena, from whom Kojo has been estranged. Kwabena persuades Kojo to bring his family to the city from which Kojo had fled seven years before. There, they live with Esi's grandmother, with whom Esi watches a Spanish-language Mexican telenovela featuring a conflict between two brothers who love the same woman. It transpires that Kojo and Kwabena had also once loved the same woman, who had died on the day of her wedding to Kwabena due to Kojo driving drunk. Kwabena, however, says that the past is the past, and wants Kojo to join him in illegal small-scale gold mining to make money. Initially reluctant, Kojo is finally persuaded, and goes with his brother to an old mine on property now owned by a Chinese company. Without warning, Kwabena pushes Kojo into an abandoned mineshaft and runs away. Esi and Ama go to the police to report Kojo missing. Esi continues to have visions of the "crow who ruled the land in-between." She realizes that the crow is her uncle Kwabena, who also died in the drunk driving crash seven years before, and the sacred white bird is her father, and that only she can find him.

Cast

Reception

Critical reception

The film has received favorable reviews from critics. On the review aggregator website, Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 100% based on 15 reviews, with an average of 9.3/10. [14] Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 93 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". [15]

Richard Brody of The New Yorker wrote, "Bazawule offers a portrait of a dawning artist that catches the early flame of artistic inspiration from within." [16] John DeFore of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "Viewers may worry that Bazawule's starkly gorgeous pictures aren't going to add up to anything, but Burial satisfies in prosaic as well as poetic terms, supplying an end that makes sense of its beginning. It will leave many who see it eager for the young filmmaker's next fable." [1] Brian Costello of Common Sense Media wrote, "This is a lush and beautiful film, filled with dazzling images drawn as much from magical realism as from the setting itself." [17]

Awards

YearCeremonyCategoryNominated workResultNotes
2018Urbanworld Film FestivalBest Narrative Feature (World Cinema) The Burial of KojoWon [10]
2019 Luxor African Film Festival Best Narrative FeatureWon [12]
Africa Movie Academy Awards Achievement in Cinematography Nominated [18]
Achievement in Production Design Nominated
Achievement in Editing Nominated
Best Visual Effects Nominated
Achievement in Makeup Nominated
Best Sound Nominated
Best First Feature Film by a Director Blitz Bazawule Won
Best Actor in a Leading Role Joseph Otsiman Nominated
Best Actor in a Supporting Role Kobina Amissah-SamNominated
Most Promising Actor Cynthia DankwaWon

Related Research Articles

Nadia Buari is a Ghanaian actress. She received two nominations for Best Actress in a Leading Role at the Africa Movie Academy Awards in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ama K. Abebrese</span> British-Ghanaian actress and producer

Ama K. Abebrese is a British-Ghanaian actress, television presenter and a producer. She was born in Ghana and raised in West London in the United Kingdom. She won the 2011 Best Actress in a Leading Role at the AMAA Awards for her stellar performance in Sinking Sands. Her film credits includes Azali (film) which is Ghana first ever selection for the Oscars; and the 2015 Netflix movie Beasts of No Nation directed by Cary Fukunaga and stars Idris Elba. She plays the mother to lead young actor Abraham Attah who plays Agu. Abebrese is listed among Africa's Top 20 Actors and Actresses by FilmContacts.com. She is the narrator and a producer on the Blitz Bazawule film The Burial of Kojo which was acquired by Array and was released on Netflix.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blitz the Ambassador</span> Ghanaian musician and filmmaker (born 1982)

Samuel Bazawule, known professionally as Blitz Bazawule and Blitz the Ambassador, is a Ghanaian filmmaker, author, visual artist, rapper, singer-songwriter, and record producer.

<i>Sinking Sands</i> Film

Sinking Sands is a 2010 Ghanaian drama film written, produced and directed by Leila Djansi, and starring Jimmy Jean-Louis, Ama Abebrese, Emmanuel Yeboah A. and Yemi Blaq. The film received nine (9) nominations and won 3 awards at the 2011 Africa Movie Academy Awards, including the awards for Best Screenplay & Best Makeup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">9th Africa Movie Academy Awards</span> Awards ceremony

The 9th Africa Movie Academy Awards ceremony honouring movies of 2012 was held in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State on 20 April 2013. The event was hosted by actress and former AMAA winner Ama K. Abebrese and Ayo Makun with many celebrities in attendance. The awards' nomination party was held in Lilongwe, Malawi; it was hosted by President Joyce Banda. A total of 671 films were submitted for consideration across Africa, America, Canada, France, Germany, Guadalupe, Italy, Jamaica, and the United Kingdom. Confusion Na Wa won the best picture award. The late Justus Esiri was awarded the Best Actor in a leading role posthumously.

<i>Double-Cross</i> (2014 film) 2014 Ghanaian film by Pascal Aka

Double-Cross is a 2014 Ghanaian epic romantic thriller told, written, co-produced, by D.R. Kufuor. It stars Ama K. Abebrese and John Dumelo as the main cast of the movie. The movie was shot predominantly in the North Legon Area of Accra Ghana.

Atukwei John Okai was a Ghanaian poet, cultural activist and academic. He was Secretary-General of the Pan African Writers' Association, and a president of the Ghana Association of Writers. His early work was published under the name John Okai. With his poems rooted in the oral tradition, he is generally acknowledged to have been the first real performance poet to emerge from Africa, and his work has been called "also politically radical and socially conscious, one of his great concerns being Pan-Africanism". His performances on radio and television worldwide include an acclaimed 1975 appearance at Poetry International at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, where he shared the stage with US poets Stanley Kunitz and Robert Lowell, and Nicolás Guillén of Cuba.

<i>The Cursed Ones</i> 2015 film by Nana Obiri Yeboah

The Cursed Ones is a 2015 British film that was directed by Nana Obiri Yeboah and produced by Nicholas K. Lory. The original screenplay was written by Maximilian Claussen. The film tells the story of a disillusioned reporter and an idealistic young pastor, who fight to free a girl accused of witchcraft from the clutches of a corrupt system and superstition in the heart of West Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Akofa Edjeani Asiedu</span> Ghanaian actress, producer and entrepreneur

Akofa Edjeani is a Ghanaian veteran film actress, producer and entrepreneur. Her short film, Not My Daughter, won Best Short Film award at the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) in 2008, and I Sing of a Well, the movie she starred in and co-produced, won three awards and the Best Jury Award from Africa Movie Academy Awards in 2010.

<i>Azali</i> (film) 2018 film

Azali is a 2018 Ghanaian drama film directed by Kwabena Gyansah. It was selected as the Ghanaian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards, but it was not nominated. It was the first time that Ghana had submitted a film for the Best International Feature Film Oscar.

Elmina is a 2010 Ghanaian film directed by Redeemer Mensah and was made in collaboration with Revele Films.

<i>Urgent</i> (film) Moroccan film

Urgent is a 2018 Moroccan drama film written and directed by Mohcine Besri. The film stars Rachid Mustafa, Fatima Zahra Bennacer, Said Bey, Youssef Al-Alaoui, Ghalia Bin Zawia and Younes Bouab. Rachid Mustapha. It was produced by Elisa Garbar, Lamia Chraibi and Michel Merkt.

Mohcine Besri is a Moroccan actor, writer, Producer and director.

Joyce Anima Misa Amoah is a Ghanaian actress, playwright and a director.

Eddie Cofie (1959–2015) was a Ghanaian actor, president of the Ghana Actors Guild and also a pastor. He featured in many Ghanaian movies like Bob Smith's Diabolo, Dirty Tears Sinking Sands and A Northern Affair.

Aloe Vera is a 2020 Ghanaian film produced by Manaa Abdallah and Anny Araba Adams as co-produced and directed by Peter Sedufia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prince Kojo-Hilton</span>

Prince Kojo-Hilton is a Ghanaian art director known for his work in the Ghanaian visual art industry.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 DeFore, John (2019-03-29). "'The Burial of Kojo': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2019-04-01.
  2. "Ghanaian-produced movie to make Netflix debut in March". 18 February 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 Ramos, Dino-Ray (2019-02-15). "Ava DuVernay's ARRAY Acquires Surreal Drama 'The Burial Of Kojo', Sets Netflix Premiere Date". Deadline. Retrieved 2019-04-01.
  4. 1 2 Tetteh, Nii Okai (2019-02-17). "Award Winning Ghanaian Film "The Burial Of Kojo" Is Set To Be Released On Netflix This March" . Retrieved 2019-04-01.
  5. "Magical realism in Accra". africasacountry.com. 13 February 2019. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  6. "Ghanaian-produced movie to make Netflix debut in March". Face2Face Africa. 2019-02-18. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  7. D'Arcy, Patrick (2017-10-25). "Behind-the-scenes of The Burial of Kojo — a dazzling new film shot in Ghana". TEDFellows. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
  8. 1 2 Tetteh, Nii Okai (2018-08-30). "NEWSBlitz The Ambassador's 'The Burial Of Kojo' Gets World Wide Premiere At The Urban World Film Festival In New York". Kuulpeeps. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
  9. "Exclusive: Blitz Bazawule Challenges Hollywood's Africa Narrative With Magical Realist 'The Burial Of Kojo'". Shadow and Act. 2018-09-21. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
  10. 1 2 Wilson, Tejah (2018-09-24). "Urbanworld 2018 Film Review: 'The Burial of Kojo'". BlackGirldNerds. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
  11. "Sola Sobowale, Adesua Etomi win at 2019 AMAA [FULL LIST]". Punch Newspapers. 28 October 2019. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
  12. 1 2 Gragau, Maulline (2019-03-26). "Ghanaian-Produced Movie, The Burial of Kojo, Wins Award at Luxor African Film Festival". The African Exponent. Retrieved 2019-04-01.
  13. Udodiong, Inemesit (19 February 2019). "The Burial Of Kojo: Here is what you need to know about Netflix's next original African movie". Business Insider. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  14. "The Burial of Kojo". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango . Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  15. "The Burial of Kojo". Metacritic .
  16. Brody, Richard (2019-03-28). "'The Burial of Kojo,' Reviewed: A Boldly Lyrical Portrait of a Young Ghanaian Girl". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2019-04-01.
  17. Costello, Brian (2019-03-19). "The Burial of Kojo - Movie Review". Common Sense Media. Retrieved 2019-04-01.
  18. Gbenga, Bada (27 October 2019). "AMAA 2019: Here are all the winners at the 15th edition of award". Pulse NG. Retrieved 29 October 2019.