Wúlu, a drama from Mali

I recently attended the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles, where one of my documentaries was screening (Masters of Rhythm).  Among the great films that I saw there were dramas Wùlu (dir. Daouda Koulibaly), Vaya (dir. Akin Omotoso), and Triangle:  Going to America (dir. Sost Maezen).  The documentaries that stood out were AfroLatinos:   an Untold History (dir. Renzo Devia) and Yemanjá:  Wisdom from the African Heart of Brazil (dir. Donna Roberts).

And there were more (such as Chidren of the Mountains, etc.).

But first, let's look at Wùlu.  Directed by Daouda Coulibaly (who also wrote the script), it's a drama about the cocaine trade in Mali, which I believe is Coulibaly's home country.  It was released in the United States in October but I haven't seen it listed in any movie theaters;  that may be for the future.

This is a fast-paced crime drama based on the current situation in Mali.  In fact, a screen at the end of the movie says that the drug trade has ruined the country.  Not the first country to be ruined by it.

This is one of the few films in which I felt really sympathetic to a hero who is a drug runner.  He's a young man who fell into the drug trade and did quite well in it.  He doesn't end up so well, but I won't go there, in case you get a chance to see it.

It's well acted, and shot on location, obviously by someone who knows the location.  We are not talking about the curious and the exotic.  We are looking through the eyes of someone who has seen, and who knows.

I haven't been able to find any good trailers for this film.  There are a couple of clips on YouTube, but they really don't give much of an idea of the film.  One way or another,  if it comes to a theater near you, try to get to see it.  It's pretty powerful.

FYI:  the two clips can be viewed HERE (#1) and HERE (#2) [subtitles in this second one are hard to read], but as I noted above, neither one gives much of the flavor of the film.  However, something is better than nothing.

(Next up:  Vaya)