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Soundtrack to a Coup d'État

Play trailer 2:04 Poster for Soundtrack to a Coup d'État Released Nov 1, 2024 2h 30m Documentary History Music Play Trailer Watchlist
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96% Tomatometer 53 Reviews Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
United Nations, 1960: the Global South ignites a political earthquake, jazz musicians Abbey Lincoln and Max Roach crash the Security Council, Nikita Khrushchev bangs his shoe, and the U.S. State Department swings into action, sending jazz ambassador Louis Armstrong to Congo to deflect attention from the CIA-backed coup. Director Johan Grimonprez captures the moment when African politics and American jazz collided in this magnificent essay film, a riveting historical rollercoaster that illuminates the political machinations behind the 1961 assassination of Congo's leader Patrice Lumumba. Richly illustrated by eyewitness accounts, official government memos, testimonies from mercenaries and CIA operatives, speeches from Lumumba himself, and a veritable canon of jazz icons, Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat interrogates colonial history to tell an urgent and timely story of precedent that resonates more than ever in today's geopolitical climate.
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Soundtrack to a Coup d'État

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Critics Consensus

Director Johan Grimonprez's sprawling documentary moves to a furious beat, laying out its thesis with an energy that's as enthralling as it is thought-provoking.

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Critics Reviews

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Philip Concannon Little White Lies Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat is a dense and meticulously constructed picture. Rated: 4/5 Jan 21, 2025 Full Review Kimberley Jones Austin Chronicle Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat relates not just Lumumba’s assassination but the larger role the Congo, a nation rich with natural resources, played in the Cold War, and the so-called Congo Crisis’ surprising intersections with midcentury American jazz. Rated: 4/5 Jan 7, 2025 Full Review Philip De Semlyen Time Out It’s the quietly magisterial Fiennes who steals the show. Don’t be surprised to see white smoke billowing out of the Academy Awards come March. Rated: 4/5 Nov 22, 2024 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews Historical documentary on jazz great Louis Armstrong. Rated: B Jan 24, 2025 Full Review Robert Roten Laramie Movie Scope This is a very ambitious film that throws a lot of ideas at the viewer. It doesn't succeed in being a compelling or entertaining narrative, but it is impressive as a research project bundled in a novel multimedia package. Rated: C Jan 16, 2025 Full Review Diego Batlle Otroscines.com ...one of the most profound, comprehensive and shocking documentaries of recent times. [Full review in Spanish] Rated: 4.5/5 Jan 15, 2025 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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kathryne c This was an excellent documentary! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/02/25 Full Review Paula T Strong combination of jazz and politics, much interesting documentary footage. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 12/15/24 Full Review Yitatek G One of the best and moving documentaries of the year! Beautifully filmed, Jazz musicians were all fabulous. The documentary captured the ugliness and unfairness of the African continent colonizers and the colonized. A must see, Rated 5 out of 5 stars 12/23/24 Full Review Read all reviews
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Movie Info

Synopsis United Nations, 1960: the Global South ignites a political earthquake, jazz musicians Abbey Lincoln and Max Roach crash the Security Council, Nikita Khrushchev bangs his shoe, and the U.S. State Department swings into action, sending jazz ambassador Louis Armstrong to Congo to deflect attention from the CIA-backed coup. Director Johan Grimonprez captures the moment when African politics and American jazz collided in this magnificent essay film, a riveting historical rollercoaster that illuminates the political machinations behind the 1961 assassination of Congo's leader Patrice Lumumba. Richly illustrated by eyewitness accounts, official government memos, testimonies from mercenaries and CIA operatives, speeches from Lumumba himself, and a veritable canon of jazz icons, Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat interrogates colonial history to tell an urgent and timely story of precedent that resonates more than ever in today's geopolitical climate.
Director
Johan Grimonprez
Producer
Daan Milius, Rémi Grellety
Screenwriter
Johan Grimonprez
Distributor
Kino Lorber
Production Co
Warboys Films
Genre
Documentary, History, Music
Original Language
French
Release Date (Theaters)
Nov 1, 2024, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 7, 2025
Box Office (Gross USA)
$164.5K
Runtime
2h 30m
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