''Flame'' is a controversial 1996

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...

directed by

Ingrid Sinclair Ingrid Sinclair is a director, screenwriter and producer best known for being an important filmmaker of the African Renaissance. She is internationally recognized for her 1996 film, ''Flame (1996 film), Flame'', a drama about the Rhodesian Bush Wa ...

, produced by Joel Phiri and

Simon Bright Simon Bright is an art director and set decorator who is best known for ''The Lord of the Rings'' films. Oscar nominations Both of these are in Best Art Direction. * 2005 Academy Awards-Nominated for ''King Kong''. Nomination shared with Dan H ...

, and stars Marian Kunonga and Ulla Mahaka. It was the first Zimbabwean film, since independence, to be set in the

Rhodesian Bush War The Rhodesian Bush War, also called the Second as well as the Zimbabwe War of Liberation, was a civil conflict from July 1964 to December 1979 in the unrecognised country of Rhodesia (later Zimbabwe-Rhodesia). The conflict pitted three for ...

. It served as a tribute to the

Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (ZANLA) was the military wing of the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), a militant African nationalist organisation that participated in the Rhodesian Bush War against white minority rule of Rhode ...

's many female guerrillas.

Plot

At the height of the

, Florence, an impulsive teenage peasant girl from the Mashonaland countryside, decides to run away and join the

(ZANLA) after her father is detained by the

Rhodesian Security Forces The Rhodesian Security Forces were the military forces of the Rhodesian government. The Rhodesian Security Forces consisted of a ground force (the Rhodesian Army), the Rhodesian Air Force, the British South Africa Police, and various personnel a ...

. She is joined on her journey by her friend, Nyasha; together, the duo trek across the border to a ZANLA training camp in neighbouring Mozambique. While undergoing guerrilla training, the girls adopt new revolutionary identities: Nyasha chooses the nom de guerre "Liberty", signifying her desire for independence, while Florence brands herself "Flame" to represent her passionate nature. Flame becomes pregnant after being raped by Comrade Che, an unscrupulous ZANLA political commissar. Although initially devastated, she reconciles herself to raising her infant son in the camp. Flame subsequently survives a Rhodesian air strike that kills both Che and their child. Deciding that she has nothing to live for but the war effort, she throws herself into her training and soon distinguishes herself in several ZANLA raids targeting infrastructure and commercial farms. The end of the war and the election of Robert Mugabe in 1980 proves bittersweet for Flame, who finds it difficult to adjust to civilian life. Many unemployed ZANLA veterans, including Flame and her new husband, feel disillusioned and neglected by Mugabe's government. Flame subsequently relocates to

Harare Harare (; formerly Salisbury ) is the capital and most populous city of Zimbabwe. The city proper has an area of 940 km2 (371 mi2) and a population of 2.12 million in the 2012 census and an estimated 3.12 million in its metropolitan ...

, where Liberty has used her background as an intelligence officer to secure a lucrative administrative post. The reunion between the two is somewhat tense, as Flame wants financial assistance but Liberty no longer believes in the collectivist lifestyle of mutual support and shared purpose once pursued in the guerrilla camps. Five years after the war's end, Flame and Liberty attend a

Heroes' Day Heroes' Day or National Heroes' Day may refer to a number of commemorations of national heroes in different countries and territories. It is often held on the birthday of a national hero or heroine, or the anniversary of their great deeds that ...

party in an increasingly authoritarian and corrupt Zimbabwe. They continue to greet passers by with the old

pan-African Pan-Africanism is a worldwide movement that aims to encourage and strengthen bonds of solidarity between all Indigenous and diaspora peoples of African ancestry. Based on a common goal dating back to the Atlantic slave trade, the movement ext ...

slogan, ''" A luta continua"'' ("the struggle continues") as the film closes.

Cast

* Marian Kunonga as Florence (Flame) * Ulla Mahaka as Nyasha (Liberty) * Robina Chombe as CharityFilms Distribution
/ref> * Dick Chingaira as Rapo

Production

The film was shot in

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...

.Director

Reception

Flame was selected for the

1996 Cannes Film Festival The 49th Cannes Film Festival was held from 9 to 20 May 1996 in film, 1996. The Palme d'Or went to ''Secrets & Lies (film), Secrets & Lies'' by Mike Leigh. The festival opened with ''Ridicule (film), Ridicule'', directed by Patrice Leconte and cl ...

Awards

Flame received several awards in the following

film festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors. Films may be of recent date and, depending upo ...

s: Southern African Film Festival, Harare *OAU Prize - Best Film *Jury Award - Best Actress *Jury Award - Best Director Journées de Cinématographe de Carthage, Tunis *Special Jury Prize - Best Film Amiens Film Festival, Amiens, France *Prix du Public - Best Film *Palmares du Jury - Best Actress *OCIC Award - Best Film M-Net Film Awards, Cape Town *Best Music The Annonay International Film Festival, France *The Grand Prix - Best Film The Milan African Film Festival *Premio del Pubblico (The Public Prize) *Concorso Lungometraggi - Migliore Opera Prima (Best First Film) The Human Rights Watch International Film Festival, New York *The Nestor Almendros Prize The International Women's Film Festival in Turenne (1998) *The Jury Award for Best Film *The Youth Award for Best Feature Film

In Zimbabwe

After being shown to the Veterans Association of Zimbabwe, the veterans claimed it was "full of lies" and were angered by the rape scene. The film was confiscated by police for being "subversive and pornographic", but was returned to the producers after a worldwide campaign. Ultimately, it passed Zimbabwean

censors Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

and became a box office success and the number one film of the year in Zimbabwe.

References

External links

''Flame''
at the

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flame (1996 Film) 1996 films 1990s war films Censorship in Zimbabwe Cold War films English-language Zimbabwean films Films set in 1975 Films set in 1994 Films set in Rhodesia Films set in Zimbabwe Films shot in Zimbabwe Films shot in Mozambique Films about rape Harare in fiction Rhodesian Bush War films Zimbabwean drama films 1990s English-language films