Sankofa

Released May 28, 1993

2h 4m

Drama

List

94%

Tomatometer

16 Reviews

89%

Audience Score

500+ Ratings

SANKOFA follows Mona (Oyafunmike Ogunlano), a Black American fashion model on a photo shoot in Cape Coast, Ghana. Through Mr. Gerima's imaginative storytelling, she undergoes a journey back in time to a plantation in North America. There she becomes Shola, an enslaved African woman who labors in the master's house and experiences the horrors of slavery firsthand. In becoming Shola, Mona recovers and confronts her ancestral identity and experience. While enduring monstrous trauma at the hands of white men who owned people for profit, Shola's interactions with her fellow enslaved Africans are rich with humanity, respect and dignity for one another. Most notably, she connects with Shango (Mutabaruka), a rebellious African man who toils in the fields, and Nunu (Alexandra Duah), one of the few of the enslaved to remember her life in Africa before being stolen and terrorized by European traders.

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Derek Malcolm

Guardian

The film is highly political in purpose and poetic in content, presenting us with a sprawling and often beautiful canvas this is reminiscent of Latin-American cinema novo of the sixties.

Feb 29, 2024

Full Review

Ty Burr

Ty Burr's Watch List

It's a film that seems ancient and wise.

Rated: 4/4

Oct 8, 2021

Full Review

Robert Daniels

RogerEbert.com

A visually enrapturing movie.

Rated: 4/4

Sep 24, 2021

Full Review

Mal Vincent

The Virginian-Pilot

Although the limited budget dictates that the film be photographed largely in close-up, the director transcends such limitations to make this a meaningfully mood piece.

Rated: 3/4

Mar 1, 2022

Full Review

David Bax

Battleship Pretension

Sankofa argues that the Black lineage across time and oceans is as recognizable and traceable as the traditions of Black folk music.

Nov 6, 2021

Full Review

Toussaint Egan

Polygon

[Haile] Gerima's film is a bold, beautiful, and bracing depiction of the redemptive power of community and rebellion and a stirring cinematic call to embrace, understand, and most importantly remember the history of human struggle.

Oct 22, 2021

Full Review

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georgan g

Just didn't hold my interest. subtitles didn't stay on long enough to be read.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

More admirable than it is artistically satisfying, most of the credit I give to Sankofa is due to the attempt to convey a compelling story about the events leading up to an eventual plantation uprising during the times of slavery, and to a certain extent it succeeds in doing so, as it's pretty difficult to watch at times in its uncompromising violence. Though the non existent budget they had to work with shows, and the film could have used a firm editing hand as there's not enough content to justify more than two hours in length, it's not an experience that's completely tarnished.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I saw it at PAFF, good movie.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/08/23

Full Review

Audience Member

a must see for people of color

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/18/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I encourage everyone to see this film. those of you who went to Lake I dont know if you remember going on a trip to see this movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/27/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Pretty edgy stuff. Though the tone of the film seems to change throughout, the themes of the film are mostly very dark: Racism, rape, death, slavery, abuse, etc. The final shots are mesmerizing and really moving.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/25/23

Full Review

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Haile Gerima

Director

Oyafunmike Ogunlano

Mona

Kofi Ghanaba

Sankofa

Alexandra Duah

Nunu

Nick Medley

Joe

Mutabaruka

Shango

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Synopsis

SANKOFA follows Mona (Oyafunmike Ogunlano), a Black American fashion model on a photo shoot in Cape Coast, Ghana. Through Mr. Gerima's imaginative storytelling, she undergoes a journey back in time to a plantation in North America. There she becomes Shola, an enslaved African woman who labors in the master's house and experiences the horrors of slavery firsthand. In becoming Shola, Mona recovers and confronts her ancestral identity and experience. While enduring monstrous trauma at the hands of white men who owned people for profit, Shola's interactions with her fellow enslaved Africans are rich with humanity, respect and dignity for one another. Most notably, she connects with Shango (Mutabaruka), a rebellious African man who toils in the fields, and Nunu (Alexandra Duah), one of the few of the enslaved to remember her life in Africa before being stolen and terrorized by European traders.

Director: Haile Gerima
Screenwriter: Haile Gerima
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): May 28, 1993, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 24, 2021
Runtime: 2h 4m

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