Africa Unite (2007)

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Directed by Stephanie Black.

Starring Danny Glover, Lauryn Hill, Rita Marley, Ziggy Marley, Angelique Kidjo.

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Africa Unite is a singular and masterfully executed film that is at once concert tribute, Marley family travelogue, and humanitarian documentary, igniting the screen with the spirit of world-renowned reggae icon BOB MARLEY in its every frame. In commemoration of Bob’s 60th birthday, Africa Unite is centered on the Marleys’ first-time-ever family trip to Ethiopia in 2005. Includes rare footage of world-renowned reggae icon Bob Marley. There in the capital city of Addis Ababa three generations of Marleys take part in a 12-hour concert attended by more than 300,000 people from around the world, with the ultimate purpose of inspiring the young generations of Africa to unite for the future of their continent. Features exuberant on-stage spots as well as a soundtrack brimming with Bob Marley studio classics. Includes appearances by UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador / actor Danny Glover, world music sensation and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Angélique Kidjo, Bob Marley’s mother Mrs. Booker, and Princess Mary, granddaughter of Emperor Haile Selassie. ~Palm Pictures

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Reviews and discussions

Re:Africa Unite
by kungfu-koala in Spout Mavens

liked it.

"Africa Unite (2007) Normally the mention of Africa in conversation invokes many different visuals. All the childhood dreams of actually going to Africa to see the amazing people and beautiful wildlife have now been overshadowed by the current affairs of the continent. A continent that continues to suffer from decades of exploitation by the wealthy. Where humans have been sacrificed for the pursuit of profit and now ad campaigns selling products in order to help people be socially conscious. Read more on my film blog " [More]

Africa Unite
by kungfu-koala in kungfu-koala Blog

liked it.

Was this review helpful? [Be the first to tell us!]
"Normally the mention of Africa in conversation invokes many different visuals. All the childhood dreams of actually going to Africa to see the amazing people and beautiful wildlife have now been overshadowed by the current affairs of the continent. A continent that continues to suffer from decades of exploitation by the wealthy. Where humans have been sacrificed for the pursuit of profit and now ad campaigns selling products in order to help people be socially conscious. Stephanie Black a director of Life and Debt and H-2 Worker shares her vision of a continent that continues to take on an uphill battle to unify the nations of Africa in order to free Africans and provide them with a promising future. Stephanie follows the Marley family on their first trip to the capital of Ethiopia for the celebration of their father Bob Marley's 60th birthday and to perform in the concert Africa Unite. A concert providing inspiration to bring Africa together to fight against the struggles it faces ... " [More]

Mixed Messages
by minerwerks in minerwerks Blog

is neutral about it.

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"The overdue reviews of two DVDs sent to me by Spout: "Out of Balance" and "Africa Unite." At a recent film screening I attended, an audience questioned the cast and crew, "Was that a movie or a message?"The surprisingly appropriate reply from an actor was, "What is a movie BUT a message?" In recent years, we have seen the venues for self-expression blossom, and among the various clutter out there, determined people with a message have found ways to break through. Two documentaries I viewed rely to some extent on the portable camera to collect material for their stories.The first of these is "Out of Balance," subtitled as "ExxonMobil's Impact on Climate Change." Writer/Director/Narrator Tom Jackson takes viewers through the basics of climate science and global warming before moving on to the corporate actions of ExxonMobil to vaunt public image and profits over public responsibility. The documentary relies on the modern approach epitomized by the works of Michael Moore, with the d ... " [More]

"Liberate yourself from mental ...
by BigJeffLebowski in BigJeffLebowski Blog

is neutral about it.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. [What do you think?]
"Africa Unite is a film with noble intentions and a wealth of entertaining and enlightening material. As a documentary, it is a distilation of the annual summit of the same name, during which the musical and political legacy of Bob Marley is celebrated through song and symposium. Every year, ambassadors from across the world gather -- this particular time in Ethiopia, the birthplace of the Rastafari movement -- to engage in academic discourse with the intent of unifying the countries of Africa into one autonomous unit not unlike the United States of America. This goal was the main ideological message of Bob Marley's music, and as such, the summit is held in his honor and features renditions of his songs by a multitude of reggae's current luminaries, including his sons.That Bob Marley's message was inextricable from his music is sometimes lost on generations of casual fans who only know his songs from commercials and the "Legend" compilation. But to be sure, ... " [More]

Woof
by joem18b in joem18b Blog

hasn't rated it.

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"Before beginning this review, a tip of the hat to sun dogs, aka parhelia, those common bright circular spots on a solar halo. Sun dogs are "an atmospheric optical phenomenon primarily associated with the reflection or refraction of sunlight by small ice crystals making up cirrus or cirrostratus clouds."Also, a little love for the Arizona Sundogs in the Central Hockey League and for a few favorite dog movies: snow dogs, rain dogs, desert dogs, moon dogs, straw dogs, stray dogs, reservoir dogs, dish dogs, lawn dogs, dead dogs, rabid dogs, chilly dogs, sleeping dogs, miracle dogs, road dogs, old dogs, dealing dogs, tap dogs, angry dogs, war dogs, catwalk dogs, deck dogs, top dogs, lost dogs, trinity dogs, urinoir dogs, bad dogs, barking dogs, fence dogs, devil dogs, gift dogs, good dogs, hot dogs, performing dogs, sea dogs, restricted dogs, society dogs, trained dogs, tokyo dogs, training dogs, wild dogs, zombie dogs, prairie dogs, and a dog's dog.And to note that Kingst ... " [More]

Africa Unite: A Celebration of ...
by analogzombie in analogzombie Blog

hasn't rated it.

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"I’ve always been more of a Peter Tosh or Burning Spear fan than that of Bob Marley. My leanings are much more political and rebellious than Marley’s later work, but I still appreciate his music and impact on global culture. His earlier, more militant efforts for black unity and self reliance were the breeding ground of his better music, and it is this music that is celebrated in Arfrica Unite. This is precisely why I think Marley is rolling in his grave now. Ziggy Marley and some of the other Marley children have been aping their father’s visage for years now, and it continues here. Profit is the order of the day complete with Coca-Cola ads and celebrities like Danny Glover. It’s actually sickening. Having seen the Melody Makers live (basically a rotating band of Bob‘s offspring), I can say that Ziggy is the best copy of his father the family has produced. The revolting and shameful acts of siblings Damian and Julian are pale imitations of their fat ... " [More]

What Did You Say? Africa Should ...
by solafekxela in solafekxela Blog

lost interest.

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"Africa Unite: A Celebration of Bob Marley’s Vision is a film with a very surprising and insightful message. It’s all about how Africa should, er, unite. Secondarily, it is a concert film about the Marley family’s voyage to Ethiopia in 2005. For a total of twelve hours, the family led a musical celebration about the late Bob’s dream for the continent. Though their musical talent is undeniable, director Stephanie Black fails to do them justice in her well-intentioned but flawed depiction of struggles past and present in Africa. Firstly, I must declaim that I have had little to do with Bob Marley’s music until now. As familiar as all the songs performed in the film sounded, I was still awed by their intoxicating rhythm and charming sincerity. The first and last few minutes of the documentary are devoted to the performances of the Marley family and those who join them on stage, but the entire film is underscored by the beats and lyrics of Bob Marley&r ... " [More]

Spout Mavens Disc #8: Africa Un ...
by rik_tod in The Cinema 4 Pylon: SpOutpost

liked it.

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"Cinema 4 Rating: 7 I didn’t really think about it at the time, but in retrospect, it almost seems like the arrival of the Africa Unite screener from Spout in late January was an intentional tie-in to the annual Black History month held the following month. After all, watching it and reviewing it would, if things went the normal course, cause my own review to be placed up on Spout in that month of African-American celebration. I, myself, am not, to the best of my knowledge, of that particular descent, except perhaps in the manner that we all are of this planet descended eventually by way of that continental plate. But this does not mean that I don’t have any great interest in this very important, and generally neglected, aspect of the history books. It’s just that I was thinking, at the time of its arrival, as Africa Unite being a mere “concert film.”Unfortunately, circumstance precluded a viewing of the screener occurring in my household until just las ... " [More]

The Great International Marley ...
by Tenenbaums in Tenenbaums Blog

hasn't rated it.

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""Africa is my home," says Rita Marley, a lifelong Jamaican and wife of one of the most beloved musicians of all time. "All of Africa."In honor of Bob Marley's 60th birthday celebration, the reggae great's family gathers with African big-wigs in Ethiopia to stage a series of talks and a mega-concert in an attempt to, as the film's title suggests, unite the nation. Director Stephanie Black wisely uses the trip as an opportunity to share the messages of peace with a wider audience in need of enlightenment on the African struggle by turning it into the documentary Africa Unite.The event is a wonderful opportunity for the once European-dominated continent (the patchwork county colonization is likened to a quilt) to be AFRICA once again. Bob wanted that to happen. Rita admits that it's "not her idea. It's Bob's idea." In the process, the Marleys, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Danny Glover, Lauryn Hill, and many African notables whi ... " [More]

An interesting mix of content
by tadiv in tadiv Blog

lost interest.

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"Palm Pictures presents a film by Stephanie Black. Africa Unite – more a documentary than a concert film – includes Danny Glover in his role as UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, most or all of the Marley family and a large number of Africans are featured who participate in what Glover calls a symposium. There is historical footage of Bob Marley, the history of Ethiopia, and clips of old films about Africa. The film runs 98 minutes. Africa Unite is a mixture of film and video documenting the 2005 "Africa Unite" event held in Ethiopia to celebrate Bob Marley’s sixtieth birthday, history lesson on Ethiopia and the African continent, and a look at the Rastafarian movement. The film is somewhat of a hodge-podge of content. There is very clean and professional filming, there is some filming that has some sort of spotted screen applied to the print, and there is what looks to be cell-phone camera video, poor in quality with smearing motion. I do not think that th ... " [More]

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Tags: concert , music , africa , documentary , bobmarley
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