FAREWELL AMOR
Ekwa Msangi’s debut feature is a beautifully observed look at an Angolan family finally reunited nearly two decades after being separated.
At the beginning of FAREWELL AMOR, Walter (Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine) is at the airport, finally welcoming his wife Esther (Zainab Jah) and teenage daughter Sylvia (Jayme Lawson), neither of whom he’s seen since he fled Angola for the USA 17 years before. This longed-for reunion isn’t without its complications. Years of living in New York City have changed Walter in ways both obvious and secret. Esther has changed too, growing more entrenched in her Christian faith in the years since the separation. And Sylvia is now a young woman, eager to find her place in the world. Only when Sylvia enters a dance competition do she and her parents discover a way of bridging the personal and political distance between them and finding home in each other. Writer-director Ekwa Msangi brings equal care and attention to exploring the perspectives of Walter, Esther, and Sylvia, each of whom is vibrantly brought to life in a trio of nuanced lead performances. With this impressive feature debut, Msangi has crafted a richly detailed, deeply human take on the American immigrant experience.
CAST: Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine, Zainab Jah, Jayme Lawson, Joie Lee
In Competition: First Feature Award
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