Bangui, Central African Republic. 17-year-old Robert (a fantastic Bradley Fiomona Dembeasset) dreams of being a musician, while a brutal civil war tears his country apart.
His parents are in jail, and it's up to him to look after his four younger siblings on his own, juggling daily life, odd jobs, and school exams. At night, he and his best friend infiltrate concerts and clubs to get their music out, all the while chasing a seemingly impossible dream.
Director Rafiki Fariala says Congo Boy is biographical, and it feels honest and lived-in at every turn. For a first-time director, Fariala has an impeccable understanding of mood and setting.
Each scene feels natural, as if we were watching a documentary rather than a fiction film. When Robert takes the stage for the first time, Fariala forgoes the usual clichés associated with musical coming-of-age stories and instead allows the naturally charismatic Dembeasset to shine without contrived difficulties. The music, attributed to Fariala, is catchy and compelling – the kind of stuff you can understand why people would gravitate towards.
The minimalist story allows for Fariala to explore themes of colonialism, poverty, and the first steps into becoming your own person in a society that has broken down around you. It finds humor in the oppression, which feels like a natural coping mechanism to all the misery and corruption. But this is not a dour or miserabilist film. Nor does it attempt to give colonizers or outsiders an easy escape, as if a single triumph makes things right.
But when victories arrive, they feel hard-earned and joyous. The tides change slowly, but gradually, and it's hard not to be swept away by them. In one of the finest moments of the film, watch how Dembeasset keeps the show going even as the electricity fails.
Despite this, Congo Boy feels a little too long, mostly because of its pacing. While Fariala has a great understanding of setting, he often lets his shots linger longer than necessary, and some scenes repeat points we've already understood twice or even thrice over. They're there to emphasize the cyclic nature of everyday life, and how monotonous the grind can feel, but a little trim wouldn't hurt.
Still, it's hard to complain too much over a debut feature that is this assured. Fairal has the makings of a great filmmaker, and I, for one, can't wait to see what he makes next. Congo Boy might be a familiar story, but it is told with such vibrancy and a unique point of view that it deserves to be seen by audiences around the world.
