Dahomey
Introduction
As a part of an intense discussion at about a halfway mark in Dahomey, Senegal’s Official Submission to the Oscars of 2025 (and in the Top 15), a student exclaims on whether he grew up completely ignorant of his heritage, his culture, his education while his life and soul was kept overseas for years! This is the kind of commentary that you observe in this immersive documentary that doesn’t wish to offer any solutions to colonialism, but is instead content in observing its people. For context, the documentary highlights the artifacts that were returned by France over a hundred years after their physical and cultural attack on the Western African state of Benin. A slight research on Wikipedia reveals that Benin ranks 161 out of 183 in the Human Development Index, thereby making it one of the most poor countries of the world. And we all know the economic status of France that ranks much higher in the same list. But was it always the case? Colonialism has impacted several countries including mine at the hands of the British, having sucked out most of the cultural identities that rightly belong to the host nation. Likewise, Benin may have once been a culturally powerful heritage of the world, woefully attacked physically and culturally by the French, while looting parts of their heritage including the statues of King Ghezo and the subsequent rulers of the land, Glele and Behanzin. This documentary focuses on the start of a change while dually flipping the narrative between a fictionalized autobiography on the 26th artifact while the discussion around it involves returning the rest of the 7000 ones (yes, you read that right).
The Good
Directed by Mati Diop (Director of Atlantis), Dahomey, standing at a slim runtime of just 68 minutes, divides itself into two halfs – the first one focusing on the fictionalized take on the 26th artifact making its way back to its home nation, while the other half focuses on a string of discussion triggered by the youth of the nation on the importance of the event, and the journey that lies ahead. And on both accounts, the writing here is prolific, almost exposing the viewers to the bittersweet feeling of being witness to a culturally significant artifact being returned as a heritage, while allowing space to ponder on the identity of generations who were never exposed to the reality of the country.
There is a steady buildup even as the camera pans to the 26th artifact – the hollow voice is imperative of the years of suffering and surviving in a foreign land that had becomes its home. And through its journey back to its home nation, it reflected on the skewed identity of the artifact even as you are witness to the colour of the hands change – from fair-skinned Frenchmen to the more dark-skinned locals (and both are equal in my eyes, this ain’t a comment on racism but more on the identity so let’s not disgress). But amidst this exchange, is a thought of skepticism of acceptance, on whether the ‘new’ surroundings and ‘eyes’ would be welcoming, while briefly dwelling on the past. The state is similar to that of a bird trapped in a cage all its life, only for the cage to be opened one day while being resisted by the bird for change. The future remains uncertain for the 26th artifact in its homeland which is beautifully showcased here.
At the same time, the focus shifts to a searing discussion that is triggered by the students, effectively representative of the youth of the country that were quenched of the cultural significance of these heritage artifacts. It is a common practice to distort history as per the alignment of the authorities, something that did term these ‘artifacts’ as ‘things’. While some were jovial and hopeful about the future, the others were cynical of being deprived of the education related to their rich heritage, while demanding the return of the other artifacts. There is a political streak that acts as an underlying layer such that the entire turn of events felt like a mere tool of gaining popularity, as exclaimed by a few students. All of it was immensely pondering and wrapped in a searing documentary.
The Not So Good
The documentary did provide a wonderful perspective of the external with respect to the voice of the people, and the internal, the fictionalized voice of the artifact. And the events were so engaging that I really wished the rebuttals to carry on for a longer duration. The arguments did come to a slightly abrupt halt that did leave me slightly distressed about the otherwise wonderful documentary. Additionally, a little more insight into the cultural heritage of Benin versus the daily life of the people, could have further made inroads as far as the impact is concerned. But these are lesser flaws in an otherwise wonderful documentary!
My Take
Like Benin, India was known to have a rich heritage brutally stripped off by the British empire. So when I was witness to the final shot of a kid looking at the statues in awe, it almost transcended in the form of a sense of belonging on my part – a start of sorts that would be helpful in shaping the outlook of the current generation. This, while several generations may have lived either in hope or in oblivion of a piece of their history being safeguarded in a foreign land. Imagine a world without colonization, and the repercussions or rather contrasting identities of such nations in today’s times. It is particularly a thing to ponder on, given the poverty that we get to see in so many countries across the world. In addition to that, it is worth pondering on that the same countries are stripped of their identities with respect to their culture and language – often adopting the latter as a medium of communication, something that was briefly addressed in the film Kneecap too. The one thing that makes each one of us unique is individualism – but if the same is stripped while having to impose a foreign force at the midst of it, then it is the death of culture. The worst part can also be the distortion of these cultural events by authorities to suit a particular narrative and gain followers. And this comes as a very strong sentiment from someone who loves studying culture through the medium of cinema amidst other secondary sources of knowledge (this is my first brush with the culture of Benin). The world is distorted with regard to individual regional cultures, but this documentary also keeps that flicker of hope alive that there will be a state of revival at some point of time!
Conclusion
Senegal’s Official Submission to the Oscars of 2025 (and in the Top 15 Nominated Foreign Films this year), Dahomey is a cinematic piece of activism veiled as a pondering interrogative documentary on history, legacy and heritage that makes for a brilliant watch. Available on Mubi and Highly Recommended!
