Starlight Movie Review: “Kirikou and the Sorceress” (Animation, French language)

Cuteness Quotient – High, Nipple Quotient…ahem...Very High

To say that this film has one of the cutest main characters you will ever see would be putting it very lightly. Kirikou is adorable, cute and very brave. He is the son that every mother wishes for; the film begins with him demanding to be let out of his mother’s belly and then proceeding to crawl out by himself, after which he disconnects the umbilical cord with a decisive yank. This bit of hilarity decidedly sets the tone for the entire film as Kirikou immediately takes an interest in the problems of his village and bravely goes to work trying to resolve them even at the risk of mortal peril.

“Kirikou and the Sorceress” was written and directed by Michel Ocelot in 1998. Okay, so the film is several years old, but that does not stop the magic! In fact, it only enhances is, which I guess is why it is being shown at the African Diaspora International Film Festival, 2013. I am delighted that this movie continues to be introduced to new audiences as it is entertaining both for children and for adults. I certainly enjoyed every minute of it.

Michel Ocelot

  (Image courtesy of wikepedia.org)

Michel Ocelot is a renowned European writer, storyboard artist, character designer and director. He was born in France but spent his childhood in the West African country of Guinea before returning to his birth country during his teenage years. Now a septuagenarian (he turned 70 this year), Michel has created several highly-acclaimed animated films but “Kirikou and the Sorceress” was by far his break-out work and the one that got him world-wide fame…and a fair amount of notoriety as well. You know what they say; every rose has its thorns. This brings us to the subject of the…ahem...nipples.

“Kirikou and the Sorceress” is set in a West African village where the women (and men, but who cares about them, right?) are bare-breasted, in other words, completely nude from the waist upwards. By now, we’ve all seen video footage taken by cultural anthropologists of African and (non-African) tribes in certain parts of the world that have remained relatively untouched by Western civilization, where this is the regular mode of dressing. To people who live in this way, bare-breasts are a normal part of life and not something that arouses wild animalistic sexual urges like they do in the West. Western cultures are completely obsessed with boobs, which is why breast augmentation via plastic surgery is a 10 billion-dollar industry in the United States alone.

Here’s an excerpt from a Wikipedia article about this film which outlines the reaction of a few western countries to the abundant “northern exposure” contained in “Kirikou and the Sorceress”:

“While already a household name in much of continental Europe, (…) his success in the more conservative markets of the United Kingdom, United States and Germany has been restricted by a mixed reaction to the realistic and non-sexual, but nevertheless omnipresent nudity in his breakout film Kirikou and the Sorceress. Although all of these countries' boards of film classification have approved it as being suitable for all ages, cinemas and TV channels have been reluctant to show it due to the possible backlash from offended parents.” (Kirikou and the Sorceress, Wikipedia) (Emphasis, mine).

What can one say to this other than, “Chill out people! Stop being so uptight! Your kids have seen far worse things! With all the sexual innuendo they are constantly being bombarded with on television, they probably know more about sex and the female anatomy than you do! Besides, the nudity in Kirikou and the Sorceress is far from being sexualized, it is very innocent really, just the way God intended it when Adam and Eve were in the garden. So relax!”

(Excerpt from "Kirikou and the Sorceress" courtesy of youtube.com) 

All joking aside, there are many lessons to be learnt from this film. For example, Kirikou finds out (after going on a dangerous quest to meet a wise old man), that the Sorceress (Karaba) is wicked to the villagers because she suffers from terrible personal pain herself. How often have we come across this in life, for instance, parents who hurt and damage their children because they themselves are living with the pain of hurts inflicted on them as kids? A man who does not know how to love a woman because he has never experienced love himself? Young girls who cannot love themselves because they were abused as children? Yes, a great deal of pain is often inherent in the human condition. Rather than blame the person, sometimes it might be worthwhile to look deeper and try to find the root-cause of the problem because then, we would stand a greater chance of finding a solution.

The film ends with a very surprising and unexpected twist, do not for one second assume that you know what is coming because what happens at the end is quite shocking. Okay, maybe I’m being a tad dramatic but it is a great film. Also, the soundtrack features none other than the great Senegalese African treasure: Youssou N'Dour. If this is not a reason to see this film then I don’t know what is. Though originally done in French, this film is available for viewing online with English subtitles. There might be English versions out there too. 10 stars and 10’s across the board from me. Spectacular!