Haramuya

This film will appeal to those who like to know more about exotic lands they will likely never visit. Ouagadougou (Wa-ga-doo-goo), the capital of Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) is such a place. A variety of characters are introduced in this tale of ordinary folks trying to get by in a Third World country. The pace of the film is slow, just as it appears daily life is in this locale. Not slow in the boring sense, but in the unhurried way of life that no doubt reflects an age-old culture in no rush to live like hectic big-city Westerners. Such a plot as there is involves a young Muslim's misadventures as he tries to find honest entry-level work. His father's religious community connections land him a job, but things start to go wrong immediately. This is a gentle family film with no violence, sex or foul language--and no special effects. Just a good story well told and well acted. We saw it on the Starz3 channel, which showed it in conjunction with BET in what appears to be a series of films of interest to African-Americans. This white couple enjoyed it a lot.