Neither the first African adaptation of Carmen (1954’s Carmen Jones) or the most unusual (Beyoncé’s A Hip-Hopera), U-Carmen is still one of the more fun instalments in a cinematic tradition that includes a staggering 50-odd flicks. Here, the action is relocated to Khayelitsha, a shantytown in South Africa. And the move makes sense – poverty and violence underpin its denizens’ daily existence, just as they do in Carmen’s operatic origins. But, perhaps more importantly, the people of Khayelitsha have a vibrancy and energy that make you believe they could burst into song and dance at any moment, with or without a film crew.
A key element is the camera – a character in itself, whizzing and sweeping through the shantytown, capturing moments as Carmen’s operatic score rises and falls. Emblematic of the recent swell of confidence evident in African cinema, U-Carmen is as accessible as Tsotsi and deserves to find its wider audience.
DVD Extras: Film notes, Trailers.
