''La Vie est belle '' / ''Life is Rosy'' is a 1987 musical comedy directed by

Mwezé Ngangura Mwezé Ngangura (born 7 October 1950) is a film director from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Early years Mwezé Ngangura was born in Bukavu, DRC on 7 October 1950. At the age of twenty he won a scholarship to go to Belgium and study ...

and

Benoît Lamy Benoît Lamy (; 19 September 1945 – 15 April 2008) was a Belgian film director, best known for his picture ''Home Sweet Home'' (1973). Biography Lamy was born in Arlon in the Belgian Province of Luxembourg and died in Braine-l'Alleud, Wal ...

. The film revolves around the vibrant music scene of

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one o ...

and tells the rags-to-riches story of a poor rural musician played by legendary Congolese musician,

Papa Wemba Jules Shungu Wembadio Pene Kikumba (14 June 1949 – 24 April 2016), known professionally as Papa Wemba (), was a Congolese singer and musician who played Congolese rumba, soukous, and ndombolo. Dubbed the "King of Rumba Rock", he was one of the ...

, the “King of Rumba Rock”, who seeks fame in the big city. The film was considered a major turning point in film production in the DRC with its more artistic approach''.'' Unlike many African films of the time that concerned themselves with the effects of colonialism, ''La vie est belle'' celebrates Congolese culture, music and the lives of Kinshasans. The film score features Congolese music from artists

Tshala Muana Élisabeth Tshala Muana Muidikay (13 March 1958 – 10 December 2022), known professionally as Tshala Muana, was a singer and dancer from Congo-Kinshasa. Considered the "Queen of Mutuashi", a traditional dance music from her native Kasai regio ...

, Klody, and Zaiko Langa Langa, a Congolese

soukous Soukous (from French '' secousse'', "shock, jolt, jerk") is a genre of dance music from Congo-Kinshasa and Congo-Brazzaville. It derived from Congolese rumba in the 1960s, becoming known for its fast dance rhythms and intricate guitar improv ...

band co-founded by Papa Wemba. Ngangura's inspiration for making ''La vie est Belle'' took root while attending the

Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou The Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (Festival panafricain du cinéma et de la télévision de Ouagadougou or FESPACO) is a film festival in Burkina Faso, held biennially in Ouagadougou, where the organization is based. It ...

where his short

Kin-Kiesse ''Kin Kiesse'' is a 1982 documentary film about "Kin" (Kinshasa), the capital of Zaire, and the capital of paradoxes and excesses, commentated on by one of its naïf artists, the painter Chéri Samba. We discover the "Kin" of night clubs, high-ris ...

(1983) won the best documentary award. In watching many of the African films screened at the festival "it was clear to me that those films were not directed to an African audience. Africa in most of these films was only a subject and the audience was outside the filmmakers’ calculations.” The making of ''La vie est belle'' was also informed by comedy sketches, which used to be featured regularly on national television, and were popular with African audiences with how they addressed their everyday lives. Ngangura's decision to center the film on music and Papa Wembe was calculated to draw in Congolese audiences as well as reach as many Africans as possible given the widespread popularity of music, especially of the Congo, which then had the most popular musicians on the continent.

Synopsis

Kourou (played by Papa Wemba) goes from his village to

, his heart full of dreams of music and success. The capital city of

Zaire Zaire (, ), officially the Republic of Zaire (french: République du Zaïre, link=no, ), was a Congolese state from 1971 to 1997 in Central Africa that was previously and is now again known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Zaire was, ...

is then the center of "World Music". Once there, he falls in love with Kabibi, a virginal young woman who wants to be a secretary. Unfortunately Nvouandou, a club owner searching for a second wife, also wants to marry her. Will Nvouandou's first wife turn out to be the best ally for young Kourou?

Cast

Awards

* The Georges Delerue Prize of the

Ghent International Film Festival Film Fest Ghent, spelt Film Fest Gent in Flemish and also known as International Film Fest Gent, is an annual international film festival in Ghent, Belgium. The festival held its first edition in 1974, under the name Internationaal Filmgebeuren ...

(1987) * Bronze Mask of Taormina International Film Festival.

References

External links

* 1987 films Georges Delerue Award winners Democratic Republic of the Congo drama films Films set in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Films shot in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Creative Commons-licensed films Films directed by Benoît Lamy Films directed by Mwezé Ngangura {{DRCongo-film-stub