Chief!
A boy nearly lynched over a hen, a calendar setting out a husband’s rules: Jean-Marie Teno films the abuse of power in Cameroon.
A film by Jean-Marie Teno
Les Films du RaphiaSecure checkout on Tribushare · Sold by Tribushare on behalf of Les Films du Raphia
- Released
- 1999
- Genre
- Documentary
- Runtime
- 1h 1m
- Audio
- Stereo
- Quality
- SD
- Aspect ratio
- 1.50:1
About the film
In December 1997, Jean-Marie Teno returns to his village in western Cameroon to film the inauguration of a monument honouring one of its past chiefs. On the second morning of the festivities he comes across a scene of mob justice: a 16-year-old boy nearly loses his life for stealing a hen and four chicks. A few hours later he buys a souvenir calendar that sets out the “rules and regulations of the husband in his home”, a series of exceptionally misogynistic “articles”.
From these events, and from the jailing of a respected journalist over an article about the president’s health, Teno reflects on the abuse of power in Cameroon, a country of chiefs and bosses, big and small. Taken together, these incidents show how it permeates everyday life in an authoritarian society, with its hierarchies, its inequalities and its lack of respect for human rights.
- Directed by
- Jean-Marie Teno
- Studios
- Les Films du Raphia, Raphia Films Production
- Distributed by
- Les Films du Raphia
Share & Earn
Share this film. Earn 10%.
Your personal link works on every film. For 30 days, you earn 10% on everything your friends rent or buy.
What people are saying
- Official SelectionBerlinale1999
- Official SelectionFreiburger Filmforum1999
- Official SelectionToronto International Film Festival1999
- International CompetitionFestival international du film francophone de Namur1999
- International CompetitionFestival international du cinéma francophone en Acadie1999
- Official SelectionCleveland International Film Festival2000
- Official SelectionUnited Nations Association Film Festival2000
“Chef! is a brisk and focused look at a nation struggling uphill against corruption and archaic social norms.”
“Very powerful and eloquent… It underscores, in a neat presentation, the challenges Africa faces in establishing rights and accountability at the village level, between the sexes and for persons of power – be they traditional or political.”
“A compelling indictment of patriarchy and the powerful – and a call for a continuing struggle for human rights.”
Inside the film
Cast & crew
- Jean-Marie TenoDirector, Producer, Cinematographer
- Christiane BadgleyEditor
- Brice WassyComposer
- Frédéric BielleSound Mixer
