"Farewell Amor" is a beautiful film that tells the same story from three different perspectives: the father, the daughter, and the mother. Director and writer Ekwa Msangi unravels the story of an African family separated and reunited after 17 years. Time changes and so do the behavior, thoughts, feelings, and attitudes of each character, how to live as a family after 17 years of separation due to Civil War in Angola? Mr. Msangi is not concerned in giving us the answer. There is a beautiful passage that uses dance as a metaphor for this situation:
"When we met, we didn't know if we would live to see the next day;
We didn't know who was a comrade, who was an informant, who was there for the right... so we danced...
When I moved, you follow,
When you hesitate, I slow down
Because we could feel each other..."
The only issue with this movie is the slow pace but if you can get through the first hour then you will get hooked on the plot.
10 Reviews
Good watch
lcherresse12 December 2020
Surprisingly upbeat and very likeable
MOscarbradley21 January 2021
"Farewell Amor" is director Ekwa Msangi's feature film debut but you would never guess it as this remarkable film feels like the work of someone who has been making films for years. The plot revolves around an Angolian woman who comes to America with her teenage daughter to be reunited with her husband after an absence of 17 years only to discover they are virtually strangers and it's told from the point of view of all three of them. However, this is no grim problem picture but a surprisingly upbeat account of lives coming together and how something as simple as dance, for example, can engage people on the most basic of levels.
The three central performances are outstanding as Msangi glides her cast seamlessly through the twists and turns of her characters' lives while getting in some nifty dance moves in the process. The fact that the wife and mother, (a splendid Zainab Jah), is deeply religious while her husband, (Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine, equally good), has lost his religion, if he ever had any, doesn't help matters just as her fidelity and his infidelity over the years proves a major hurdle they must overcome. But, as I said, grimness is put on the back-burner and this lovely character study is all the better for it.
The three central performances are outstanding as Msangi glides her cast seamlessly through the twists and turns of her characters' lives while getting in some nifty dance moves in the process. The fact that the wife and mother, (a splendid Zainab Jah), is deeply religious while her husband, (Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine, equally good), has lost his religion, if he ever had any, doesn't help matters just as her fidelity and his infidelity over the years proves a major hurdle they must overcome. But, as I said, grimness is put on the back-burner and this lovely character study is all the better for it.
Surprisingly good
Gordon-1123 December 2020
Let's dance
ferguson-610 December 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Greetings again from the darkness. Awkwardness abounds in the opening scene as Walter, his wife, and their teenage daughter reunite at JFK airport. The Angolan family has been separated for 17 years, and reality hits as the threesome grasp that they don't even really know each other. The reunion gets more uncomfortable as they try to settle into Walter's cramped one bedroom apartment. He's been living and working in New York City as a taxi driver while the paperwork was processed to allow his family to join him.
This is the first feature film from writer-director Ekwa Msangi, and she expands her 2016 short film FAREWELL MEU AMOR. Ntare Gum Mbaho Mwine stars as Walter, the taxi driver and husband/father with a secret. His wife Esther is played by Zainab Jah, and it's her religious zealousness that complicates things for the reunited family. Their daughter Sylvia is played by newcomer Jayme Lawson, a teenager whose simmering energy and passion for dancing is masked by her quiet demeanor. In fact, it's dancing that links the three characters and ultimately breaks down barriers.
Ms. Msangi cleverly utilizes individual chapters for the three main characters within the larger story. We quickly get a feel for the difficulties and challenges each is facing during this transition. Walter is struggling with the separation from Linda (Nana Mensah), a nurse he had grown quite fond of. Esther is reacts to her husband's independence by praying louder and harder and sending money to her church. Sylvia's story is perhaps the most interesting. As an immigrant, she's an outcast at school, and only the kindness of classmate DJ (Marcus Scribner) allows her to create her space with a terrific dance off. There is also an interesting interaction between Esther and a neighbor (Joie Lee), one of the few who knows the full story and tries to help.
Cultural upheaval is on display, and there are quite a few touching scenes. Walter and Esther have dinner out at a nice restaurant, and it's a scene filled with conflicting feelings and emotions ... handled extremely well by the actors. There is a gentleness and sincerity to the film, and we find ourselves hoping things will work out well for all three. Perhaps it's a stretch to think dancing might be the key to a smoother transition, but the way it plays out is quite pleasant to watch. It's a terrific first feature from Ekwa Msangi. In Theaters and On Demand December 11
This is the first feature film from writer-director Ekwa Msangi, and she expands her 2016 short film FAREWELL MEU AMOR. Ntare Gum Mbaho Mwine stars as Walter, the taxi driver and husband/father with a secret. His wife Esther is played by Zainab Jah, and it's her religious zealousness that complicates things for the reunited family. Their daughter Sylvia is played by newcomer Jayme Lawson, a teenager whose simmering energy and passion for dancing is masked by her quiet demeanor. In fact, it's dancing that links the three characters and ultimately breaks down barriers.
Ms. Msangi cleverly utilizes individual chapters for the three main characters within the larger story. We quickly get a feel for the difficulties and challenges each is facing during this transition. Walter is struggling with the separation from Linda (Nana Mensah), a nurse he had grown quite fond of. Esther is reacts to her husband's independence by praying louder and harder and sending money to her church. Sylvia's story is perhaps the most interesting. As an immigrant, she's an outcast at school, and only the kindness of classmate DJ (Marcus Scribner) allows her to create her space with a terrific dance off. There is also an interesting interaction between Esther and a neighbor (Joie Lee), one of the few who knows the full story and tries to help.
Cultural upheaval is on display, and there are quite a few touching scenes. Walter and Esther have dinner out at a nice restaurant, and it's a scene filled with conflicting feelings and emotions ... handled extremely well by the actors. There is a gentleness and sincerity to the film, and we find ourselves hoping things will work out well for all three. Perhaps it's a stretch to think dancing might be the key to a smoother transition, but the way it plays out is quite pleasant to watch. It's a terrific first feature from Ekwa Msangi. In Theaters and On Demand December 11
Beautiful, heartfelt, feel-good film with a fair dose of realism
org1andrew20 December 2020
This film is really well made. The interactions feel real. The acting is incredible. The story is unique compared to other low-key struggling-to-survive-in-the-big-city films-and it's really a lot more about the difficult sacrifices the characters had to make prior to the start of the film. It pulls you in quickly and keeps you entertained.
I'm not much of a reviewer, but I encourage anyone reading this to watch this film. It's definitely one of my cinematic highlights of 2020.
I'm not sure how representative it is of new immigrant refugee families in the USA-it's perhaps a bit too optimistic in its message-but in these dark times, sometimes that's what the audience wants.
I'm not much of a reviewer, but I encourage anyone reading this to watch this film. It's definitely one of my cinematic highlights of 2020.
I'm not sure how representative it is of new immigrant refugee families in the USA-it's perhaps a bit too optimistic in its message-but in these dark times, sometimes that's what the audience wants.
An Oscar Worthy African Love Story
AndreOzim14 December 2020
Good cinematography
stefanknezovic29 January 2021
A New Immigration Experience
MikeyB179315 July 2022
This was a wonderful, nuanced performance by the three principal actors in this drama. We follow their trajectory and adaptation as they arrive and settle in New York. Mother and daughter have been apart from their husband/father for 17 years as he worked in NYC. They had fled their homeland in Angola for Dars es Salaam in Tanzania.
They try to adjust to the enormous differences that have developed over this long time period.
This could easily have evolved into an over-extended melodrama - but instead we witness characters interacting and overcoming each other's short-comings.
They try to adjust to the enormous differences that have developed over this long time period.
This could easily have evolved into an over-extended melodrama - but instead we witness characters interacting and overcoming each other's short-comings.
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