| Félicité | |
| Director: | Alain Gomis |
| Producer: | Arnaud Dommerc |
| Starring: | Véro Tshanda Beya Mputu |
| Music: | Kasai Allstars and Orchestre Symphonique Kimbanguiste |
| Cinematography: | Céline Bozon |
| Editing: | Fabrice Rouaud |
| Distributor: | Jour2Fête (France) Strand Releasing (United States) |
| Runtime: | 123 minutes |
| Country: | France Senegal |
| Language: | Lingala French |
| Gross: | $259,098[1] [2] |
Félicité is a 2017 Senegalese drama film set in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and directed by Alain Gomis.[3] It was selected to compete for the Golden Bear in the main competition section of the 67th Berlin International Film Festival.[4] At Berlin, the film won the Jury Grand Prix award.[5] At the 2017 Africa Movie Academy Awards, it won six awards which is the highest for a film in the history of the award ceremony, including categories for best film, best actress, best supporting actor, best editing, best soundtrack and best film in an African language.[6] [7] [8]
It was selected as the Senegalese entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards,[9] making the December shortlist.[10] It was the first time Senegal had sent a film for consideration for the Best Foreign Language film.[11]
The film tells the story of how a bar entertainer struggles to get funds after her child is hospitalized.
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 98% based on 46 reviews, and an average rating of 7.3/10. The website's critical consensus states: "Félicité depicts a culture and a setting unfamiliar to many viewers, but its themes - and Véro Tshanda Beya Mputu's performance - transcend borders".[12] On Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score, the film holds a score of 75 out of 100, based on reviews from 13 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[13] Jordan Mintzer of The Hollywood Reporter described the film as "rough and heartfelt".[14]