West Indies: The Fugitive Slaves of Liberty

+ intro by Ashley Clark

Med Hondo’s spectacular musical traces the history of the West Indies.

  • Director

    Med Hondo

  • With

    Cyril Aventurin, Fernand Berset, Roland Bertin

  • France-Algeria-Mauritania 1979. 113min

  • Digital

  • English subtitles

On paper, Mauritanian director Med Hondo’s film seems difficult to believe: a single-set song-and-dance voyage through four centuries of colonialism, enslavement, liberation struggles and modern immigration – in just 110 minutes. On screen, it’s astonishing to behold the successful realisation of such an ambitious project. One of the greatest movies ever made, Hondo’s thrillingly passionate cri de coeur remains a troubling, resonant work.