Abderrahmane Sissako's Timbuktu centers around an ensemble of characters, all residing in or around the ancient Malian city. In Timbuktu, people are suffering, powerless under the oppressive regime of the Jihadists who are determined to enforce their brand of religious justice. Outside of the city, Kidane, a cattle herder, lives peacefully in the dunes with his wife, Satima and daughter Toya. Kidane and his family have managed to stay out of the way for awhile now, but eventually the Jihadist regime impacts their lives as well . A powerful story of tyranny, Abderrahmane Sissako's Timbuktu delivers a detailed cross section of ordinary Mali people living among Jihadists, who routinely instill their will over the townsfolk. Never manipulative or overly dramatic, Timbuktu is a somber, quiet experience, that never focuses on one central character but instead a host of men and woman, struggling to live freely under oppression. We see how everyone is affected by the Jihadist, most notably woman who are completely stripped of their dignity at every turn. While this film feels like an ensemble, Kidane and his family are centrally important to the film, representing how darkness and despair are almost inevitable when tyrannical regimes are present. Timbuktu meticulously exposes the outright stupidity and hypocrisy of Jihad, doing so in haunting and sometimes comical ways, almost laughing at the pure absurdity of how these men use religion to justify almost anything they desire. Abderrahmane Sissako's Timbuktu masterfully balances its mix of tones, being part satire, tragedy and melodrama, delivering a powerful portrait of life for individuals forced to live under a tyrannical regime.
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June 2023
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