Noire de..., La (1966)

Director:

Ousmane Sembene

Writer:

Ousmane Sembene (writer)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A black girl from Senegal becomes a servant in France.

Plot Keywords:

France | Apartment | Alienation | Young Woman | Maid

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Mbissine Thérèse Diop	...	Diouana
Anne-Marie Jelinek	...	Madame (as Anne-Marie Jelinck)
Robert Fontaine	...	Monsieur
Momar Nar Sene	...	Diouana's Boyfriend
Ibrahima Boy	...	Boy with Mask
Bernard Delbard	...	Young Male Guest
Nicole Donati	...	Young Female Guest
Raymond Lemeri	...	Old Male Guest (as Raymond Lemery)
Suzanne Lemeri	...	Old Female Guest (as Suzanne Lemery)
Philippe	...	Couple's Oldest Son
Sophie	...	Couple's Daughter
Damien	...	Couple's Youngest Son
Toto Bissainthe	...	Diouana (voice)
Robert Marcy	...	Monsieur (voice)
Sophie Leclerc	...	Madame (voice)

Also Known As:

Black Girl (Canada: English title) (USA)

Runtime:

65 min

Country:

France | Senegal

Language:

French

Color:

Black and White | Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Antibes, Alpes-Maritimes, France

Company:

Filmi Domirev

Trivia:

This is believed to be the first feature film made by a black African in sub-Saharan Africa.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Hype! (1996)

A Thoughtful Commentary...

On the injustices one culture can do to another. The film is about an African woman who gets a job with a white family and agrees to follow them back to France, only to be disenheartened in the end. While, the production values were not great, the messages of this film are stronger than most major US motion pictures. The characters (especially the French) do seem to be a bit shallow, and don't have much depth to them. Yet, the theme of loneliness from displacement and cultural injustice ring powerfully loud in the end. An 8 out of 10.