Mandabi

1968 [WO]

Action / Comedy / Drama

10
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Rotten 75% · 23 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 75% · 500 ratings
IMDb Rating 7.3/10 10 1741 1.7K

Plot summary

A money order from a relative in Paris throws the life of a Senegalese family man out of order. He deals with corruption, greed, problematic family members, the locals and the changing from his traditional way of living to a more modern one.

Director

Ousmane Sembene Photo
Ousmane Sembene

Top cast

Thérèse Bas Photo
Thérèse Bas as Dieng's Sister
Christoph Colomb Photo
Christoph Colomb as Water Peddler
Mamadou Cisoko Photo
Mamadou Cisoko as Madiagne Diagne the 2nd Neighbor
Serigne N'Diayes Photo
Serigne N'Diayes as Imam
720p.BluRay 1080p.BluRay
844.64 MB
1204*720
Wo 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 32 min
Seeds 1
1.53 GB
1792*1072
Wo 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 32 min
Seeds 3

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by gbill-74877 8 / 10

A nice find

Through the simple event of a Senegalese man receiving a money order from his nephew working in Paris, we see so much of his world, starting with his relationships with his two wives, and how his family and his neighbors live meal to meal. There is a sense of humanity in the giving and sharing that takes place when someone is in need, but there are also many examples of predatory behavior, and indeed, it's the latter that ultimately begins to dominate. The man embarks on an odyssey through bureaucrats, con men, greedy friends, and money lenders. Many people come to him because their own children haven't recently eaten, but he owes many others, and is only actually entitled to a fraction of the money order, assuming he can cash it in the first place.It's pretty striking how this man absolutely rules the roost over his wives at home, but is almost helpless in a world that is modernizing around him. He's been unemployed for four years, can't read (at least the French he needs to), and is often at the mercy of people far more savvy than him. In trying to get the proper forms filled out to get an identity card, which can then be used to cash the money order, he's asked for his date of birth, and he doesn't even know that, just that he was born "sometime around 1900." He can barely keep his oversized outfit from poofing out while walking around, a contrast to how elegant his wives are while they stroll around. He's a petty tyrant at home, threatening his wives with a backhand and having them wait on him, hardly a sympathetic figure, but almost a child in the world, and it's hard not to empathize with his growing humiliation.Eight years into its independence, there is a criticism of Senegal here - how French was still the official language despite most of its citizens only speaking Wolof or Arabic, how women were being treated, how good people lived in poverty, and how layers of corruption existed in the system, including the new bourgeoisie. There is quite a contrast to the modern home of the man's nephew, and it's soul crushing how he takes advantage of his own uncle, perhaps the ultimate statement from Sembene of capitalism devouring people.On top of its sociopolitical messages, this is a beautiful film. The colors in the fabrics and décor are rich and gorgeous, and the traditional music composed by Sembène is a treat to listen to. The film moves along with good pace, and the storytelling isn't forced or preachy. Quite a nice little find.
Reviewed by ThurstonHunger 6 / 10

Hustle and no cash flow

Could see how watching this in a film studies class, or in conjunction with reading about Sembene (or even his story that spawned this) would make for a completely different experience.Of the three films by him I've seen so far, "Borom Sarret" was the one that resonated the most. This film I think takes a similar tack, but the main character here is so hapless, that it feels his doomed fate like his domed pate, are inherent in his character. The wagon master in that short just seemed noble and just, and ends up just royally screwed.Here good fortune on paper turns to bad luck in person, and everyone seems to be on the scam. The imam and his posse, the double-dipping beggar lady on the street, the wives, the photographer. And as in "Borom" ultimately the wealthy just screw over the impoverished while making a grand false gesture on par with grand larceny. I could see it as satire (as the poster indicates), but the situation came across so dire it just made me think of people on ever continent caught in debt spirals.The relationship of the wives (count 'em two) to the agonizing protagonist is not really explored but fascinating to me, never mind the seven children. It almost begs its own very different film, but this film is more about the tiers of people on the take. And the crazy within bureaucracy. An idea that is not so foreign as the setting for this film. Sadly...
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