"Finding Fela—" a look inside the mesmerizing life of steadfast activist/musician/ Fela Kuti under Award-winning director Alex Gibney’s keen cinematic eye is a joyful adventure that's creatively supported by hypnotic music and skillfully coupled with heart wrenching politics and personal insight into the life of the man that became legend—Fela.
"Finding Fela" is executive produced by New York businessman Stephen Hendel and his wife Ruth Hendel who also produced the 2009 Tony Award winning play, FELA! directed by McArthur Fellowship-winning choreographer and director Bill T. Jones.
Gibney’s pairing with the footage of the "making of the Broadway musical" (FElA!) is a artistic stroke of genius.
"Finding Fela" is just as the film title suggests, a journey of discovery and an appreciation of just how difficult it is to put this man’s life on stage, while witnessing an authentic jumble of characters all of whom share their poignant views and personal stories.
One of the most riveting and contemporary parts in the film is provided by Seun Kuti (31) the youngest son who inherited his father’s extraordinary Egypt 80 orchestra after his death.
Gibney doesn't romance Fela's life nor flinch from sharing the documented facts surrounding his uncontrollable womanizing in the name of free love, his indifference towards his children and his irresponsibility with sexual health. He died of AIDS- related illness in 2007.
Gibney achieves that alchemic balance choosing to use the music to highlight the bravery and conscience of a man who risked his life (daily) in the face of a brutal Nigerian military who would constantly beat and harass him.
Fela is not deified in any way and no critic could argue that this is a classics biopic. It isn't like Kevin Macdonald’s "Marley" or Martin Scorsese's "The Last Waltz"—it's better—and I wouldn't be surprised if it earns a 2015 Oscar like Morgan Neville’s euphoric "20 Feet From Stardom."
Gibney’s "Finding Fela" speaks eloquently to his constant search for identity. The film handpicks key moments in Fela’s life: his decision to reject medicine and study music, listening to James Brown, witnessing the Black Panthers – all of which crystallized his views which enriched his music and, stone-by-stone, helped paved his path to iconic status.
Music is everywhere and Afrobeat and Jazz fans will not walk away unserved!
Yes, the politics is raw and urgent and the storytelling immensely thoughtful but it's the sound that will make "Finding Fela" successful.
Music as weaponry and an uniting force that cruelty can't extinguish.
Protest as performance. The struggle continues and the message—like music—keeps hope alive!
"Finding Fela" opens in theaters on August 1, 2014.