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A Screaming Man

A Screaming Man (2011)

April. 13,2011
|
6.7
|
NR
| Drama War

Adam Ousmane is a pool attendant at a local resort. When the new managers decide to downsize, Adam loses his job to his own son, Abdel. Shattered by the turn of events, Adam is pressured into contributing to the Chadian war effort. With no money to speak of, the only asset he can donate is his son.

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Red-125
2011/04/13

The Chadian film Un homme qui crie was shown in the U.S. with the translated title A Screaming Man (2010). The movie was written and directed by the Chadian filmmaker Mahamat-Saleh HarounYoussouf Djaoro portrays Adam Ousmane, who is called "Champion." When he was younger, he won the Central African swimming championship, and the name has stayed with him. His son, Abdel Ousmane (Diouc Koma) works with his father in a high-end hotel in the nation's capital. Both of them work at the hotel's swimming pool, where Adam is respected, and Abdel is adored by everyone because of his good looks and his easy-going manner.This movie reminded me of a Greek tragedy. That's not because the father and son come into unwilling conflict, but because Adam has to make a choice between two terrible options. How can you do the right thing if either path you choose is the wrong path? When there are two compelling demands, and each precludes the other, what happens to the protagonist?Adam is caught in just such a situation. There's a war going on, and the local political boss demands payment to the government. Adam, although not poor, doesn't have the money to make the payment. What are his options?This movie is worth seeing on its own merits. That fact that it's from Chad makes it even more important to view it. If I counted correctly, less than a dozen films have been made in Chad. The superb Dryden Theatre at The Eastman Museum in Rochester is showing five of these movies as part of a Mahamat-Saleh Haroun retrospective. My compliments to the Dryden for giving us the opportunity to see these movies on the large screen. (Some of Haroun's films are available for the small screen, but some are not.) Seeing these movies on the large screen was truly a privilege. Un homme qui crie is a great film--see it if you can. P.S. Even with the resources of the Eastman Museum, a print of Haroun's "Bye Bye Africa" couldn't be located. If you know someone who has a print of that movie, please notify the Dryden Theatre.

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Pablo
2011/04/14

For starters, this is a very interesting film in my opinion. It has many different elements to it that are so different from all of the American films that people see today. One thing I noticed that this film had a lot of is silence. Other films we've seen like Ixcanul were very quietus well. There were maybe 40 lines of dialogue total in the entire film. Another thing I noticed that was very interesting was that there were very little characters. There were maybe around 6 actors that actually contributed to the main plot. This was also similar to Ixcanul, as there were 4 main characters, the mom, the daughter, the dad, and the daughter's husband. Something that really estranged me in the film was when Abdel's girlfriend came to his house. His parents didn't even know he had a girlfriend by the looks of it, and then proceed to take her in as their daughter. I just don't understand why they did that. Doesn't she have parents too? Some thing I liked about the film were its simplicity and some of the views of what its like in Africa as well.

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olrovin
2011/04/15

The Screaming Man is a fascinating tale about the bond of a father and son. Everything is going well; the father loves his job working at the pool of a local hotel, and his son, Abdel, ends up joining him. The father, Adam/Champ, says that the pool is his life, and he seems to love everything about his job. Things begin to change as a Chinese company takes over the hotel, and Adam's friend, who works as the cook, gets fired. Adam is moved to the position of gate guard, and his son takes over the position of pool boy. After this, Adam is portrayed as very sad and brooding in many of the scenes. Unlike American films, there are a lot of silences. I am not accustomed to seeing this in movies or in general because in our culture, usually people talk a lot (sometimes too much). However, I think it is a good representation of life. We, as humans, are alone a lot and have a lot of chances to reflect and think about our choices and our beliefs. Abdel is drafted to fight in the civil war which we later find out is because Adam got him into in. I think he did this for selfish reasons but later regretted this decision. Parents are people, too, with needs and hopes and dreams and wants. Adam loved the pool so much that he was willing to sacrifice his son to get what he wanted, but then he realized the error of his ways.

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chunky_lover_68
2011/04/16

By far my favourite film I've seen so far this year, A Screaming Man is an extremely captivating and thought provoking film that doesn't have to try too hard to get its ideas across. I think it says a lot without having to say so much, and in that simplicity, the viewer can find a whole world of complexities lying under the characters and their tale. I don't know why but this film just really spoke to me on a lot of levels, as a employee, as a son, and as a man. I'm really glad to have decided to check it out as I had originally thought this film would be unrealisable to me and possibly boring, but it's quite the opposite, It's a film I'm going to be thinking about for quite some time and engaged me thoughtfully the entire way through.Meet Adam, he's is fifty-five years old and has spent thirty of those as the pool manager at the nearby hotel in an unknown village in the country of Chad. Adam is content with his life as it keeps him considerably happy and even allows for his son to have a job as his assistant. But all of that changes when the hotel changes hands to new owners, unfortunately they do not see the worth in this long time employee and former swimming champion. Complacency gets the best of Adam when he is informed he no longer the pool assistant, and instead manning the front gate of the hotel. This shift to a job he does not like is further impacted by jealousy as he watches his son take over the position he never wished to give up. What is more is that Adam's village is become a more hostile place by the day, as warring rebels seem to draw closer to home. It is here that Adam makes a regretful choice with the leader of the resistance movement, leading to the heartbreak for himself and his family. Can Adam learn to accept his fate and make better the things he did to try and divert it, or will he be lost in the growing turmoil of war and suffering that will leave him A Screaming Man? Wow, I did not expect this movie to be this way. I actually thought this film would be slightly jarring given the title, but no real screaming or profuse anger exists here; the screaming is done within the mind. And what a mind to try and unravel, Adam is easily one of the years best characters and performances. It's certainly a quiet performance, but it says so much without having to, I really enjoyed that about the character, he wasn't entrenched in some well said dramatic dialogue, instead it's felt and experienced along with the character. Youssouf Djaoro is ridiculously on point with the role, capturing all the confliction and anger of Adam in a single glance, I really felt for and rallied behind this person from the start; easily the best performance I've seen this year, just so perfectly done. The story itself is surprising and the emotions presented within feel really honest. The film also allows for brilliant moments of humour and introspection to go along with its more serious events, and the world around Adam is smartly realized. The pacing of the film is really solid, and the direction is flat out brilliant, the story wouldn't of worked without director Mahamat-Saleh Haroun eye for nuance and simplistic effectiveness. I found parts of the film quite intense though there is little action in the film, the title of the film is apt in that way, no one screams, but the strength of the story doesn't require them too, it is written all over their faces with brilliant ability. I only really take issue with the ambiguous ending which left me confused at the films final events, I suppose it's open to interpretation this way, but I think it wasn't really necessary; perhaps the director felt without it the film would seem cliché, but I found everything up to that point brutally original and eye opening. Overall I just really loved the story, and a better film could not be made from it, this is a very close call with cinematic perfection in my eyes and one that will most likely to remain at the top of my list come years end, quite happy to have been afforded the opportunity to travel the dusty roads and narrow alleys with this character. If I can track down a copy to buy, I most certainly will by it without hesitation.So I truly do recommend this film as a great example of effective filmmaking. I didn't know what I was going to get with this one, but the results we're overwhelming in a good way. If you get a chance to see this film, do not pass it up, as far as dramatic films go for the year, this is among the best you'll find. Unfortunate that it's joint sponsorship will make it ineligible for consideration in the AMPAS foreign film category, perhaps a group such as the Hollywood foreign press (Golden Globes) who define the category as foreign Language will show it some love. Either way, A Screaming Man is an extremely well played meditation on what it is like to have your world flipped upside down in a heartbeat, and how one makes amends with the unpredictability of life. Highly Recommended.

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