X
- 2022
- MUBI
- 1 h 37 m
- 2022
- MUBI
- 1 h 37 m
- 2022
- MUBI
- 1 h 37 m
- 2022
- MUBI
- 1 h 37 m
The African Desperate
72
4.5
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 9 Critic Reviews
72
89% Positive
8 Reviews
8 Reviews
11% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 9 Critic Reviews
72
89% Positive
8 Reviews
8 Reviews
11% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Drawn from Syms’s own experiences as a visual artist, The African Desperate is less an art-school parody as it is a portrait of existential incongruity, where contempt mingles with deep affection.
Martine Syms has a singular voice, flowing with creativity. Using her own background as an artist, Syms has taken artistic academia and the whiplash of exiting the comfort of school and churned it into a jungle juice of weed, ketamine, and self-discovery.
The African Desperate is an electrifying, riveting odyssey, and Stingily—with her deadpan humor and no-nonsense swagger—makes its ending all the more cathartic.
Syms’ debut is anything but desperate; au contraire, this is the mark of a relaxed, confident filmmaker with a long, bright future.
Syms packs The African Desperate with pleasing ingenuity that facilitates its complex perspective; this is a film that must be sat with to fully appreciate.
That The African Desperate is a send-up of art school is beyond doubt, but what’s less clear is just how far the satire goes.
Stingily is relaxed and amiable, but in acting terms there may be nothing else there and the film doesn’t develop in any interesting direction.
User Score
Mixed or Average
Based on 4 User Ratings
4.5
0% Positive
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
75% Mixed
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
25% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
User Score
Mixed or Average
Based on 4 User Ratings
4.5
0% Positive
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
75% Mixed
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
25% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.
Production Company
Ways & Means
Release Date Sep 16, 2022
Duration 1 h 37 m
Awards
Film Independent Spirit Awards
• 1 Nomination