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1979 American film
Bush Mama
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Directed by
| Haile Gerima
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Starring
| Barbarao
, Johnny Weathers
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Release date
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Running time
| 97 minutes
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Country
| United States
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Language
| English
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Bush Mama
is an American
film
made by
Ethiopian
-American
director
Haile Gerima
, part of the
L.A. Rebellion
movement of political and experimental black cinema in the 1970s. It was released in 1979 though made earlier, in 1975.
[1]
Making
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]
The film was made by Gerima as his thesis project at the
University of California at Los Angeles
, shot on a small budget. It was directed, produced and edited by Gerima with
cinematography
by Roderick Young and
Charles Burnett
.
[2]
The first half is filmed in a
cinema verite
style, making heavy use of
improvisation
, while the second half moves away from naturalism towards a
Godardian
agit prop approach.
[3]
Plot
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]
Bush Mama
is the story of Dorothy and her husband T.C. He is a discharged
Vietnam veteran
who thought he would return home to a "hero's welcome." Instead, he is falsely arrested and imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit. Her life revolves around the
welfare
office and a community facing
poverty
and
unemployment
. As a result of the film's events, both the main characters become
radicalized
and Dorothy eventually turns to violence.
Cast
[
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]
- Barbarao (as Barbara O. Jones) - Dorothy
- Johnny Weathers - T.C.
- Susan Williams - Luann
- Cora Lee Day - Molly
- Simmi Ella Nelson - Simmi
- Bettie J. Wilson - Social Worker
- Bob Ogburn Jr. -
Dahomey
man
- Ben Collins - Ben
- Renna Kraft - Angi
- Darian Gibbs - Young Street Boy
- Minnie Stewart - 1st Welfare Recipient
- Malbertha Pickett - 2nd Welfare Recipient
- Bertha Yates - Secretary
- Chris Clay - Policeman
- Charles David Brooks III - Preacher
Reception and legacy
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The film received "wide critical acclaim" and was "showcased at many major international film festivals."
[4]
The
New York Times
called it "fiery, furious, overflowing with rhetoric and slightly out of breath", praising the main actors but saying the director's fierce polemic sometime overwhelms the dramatic aspects of the film.
[5]
In 2022, it was selected for preservation in the
National Film Registry
by the
Library of Congress
deeming it "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant."
[6]
[7]
See also
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References
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External links
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