I'll admit I was skeptical about "Africa Unite." I didn't think I would find the film very interesting, since I'm not a huge fan of reggae, nor do I understand rastafarianism. But I was pleasantly surprised by Stephanie Black's documentary about a huge concert and African unity conference in celebration of Bob Marley's 60th birthday. While the film serves mostly as rasta propaganda, there are parts of it that I found touching, inspiring and on the whole very informative about the subject matter.
One of the threads the documentary follows is the story of a 70-year-old Rasta from Jamaica, whose community raises the money for him to attend the conference/concert in Ethiopia. For this man, who has spent 50 years in the Rasta faith, this trip is the opportunity of a lifetime. It tugs a little at the heartstrings to see the man so impressed, excited and inspired by the message of African unity preached at the conference, and by his visits to sites such as Emperor Haile Selassie's Cathedral.
Another point I found particularly interesting was the in-depth description of Rastafarianism, and the Rastas' worship of Selassie, who ruled over Ethiopia from World War II through part of the 1960s. Selassie's message of personal freedom and inner resolve still resonates in the Ethiopians today, as well as people like Marley, who furthered the cause of an Africa without borders and separate governments. While I don't really advocate the worship of one particular human being, I do find Selassie to be an inspirational character, and the documentary does a good job of explaining why.
I was a little disappointed, however, that there wasn't more concert footage from the film. I feel like "Africa Unite" might have been a more effective film if it had been almost exclusively a concert movie, interspersed with information about Marley, Selassie, Rastafarianism and the conference. As it is, the majority of "Africa Unite" is footage from round table discussions and conference attendees. While some of these vignettes are interesting, they don't add together to make an interesting film. It serves more as a long, narrationless news report.
I couldn't see renting or buying this film, even if I was a big Bob Marley fan. It's not quite a concert film, not quite an interesting documentary. It's something of a mashup, and never quite coheres. While I did find "Africa Unite" informative and inspirational, I also found it lacking in several areas.