This Is Not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection

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This Is Not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection

The late Mary Twala Mhlongo, recognizable from Beyoncé’s blockbuster musical Black Is King, gives a heartbreaking career-capping performance as Mantoa, an 80-year-old woman who has lived in a small village in Lesotho for her entire life. While preparing for her own death, she receives word of an accident that has killed her only son, leaving her entirely alone save for the respect of her community, the traditions of her ancestors, and the courage of her convictions. When her community must relocate to make way for a nearby dam that will flood her family’s burial ground, Mantoa draws a line in the sand and becomes an unlikely political and spiritual leader. Berlin-based Mosotho filmmaker Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese’s devastating and hypnotic This Is Not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection is already one of the most esteemed African films ever to hit the international festival circuit, earning the Special Jury Prize for Visionary Filmmaking at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival before taking home Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Cinematography at Africa’s Academy Awards.

The first masterpiece of 2021 is here!
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture
Every once in awhile, a movie reinvigorates one’s faith in the artistic capacity of an entire medium through pure intuition of form and mastery of intent. This Is Not A Burial, It’s A Resurrection is that rare gem of a film that falls into an unclassifiable category.
Andrew Bundy, The Playlist
A masterful tale of grief, belonging and defiance. Mosese has crafted a poetic ode to cinema that is breathtaking in its beauty and gut-wrenching in its sombre themes.
Sekese Rasephei, New Frame


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