Konorofili is a fine first film. Well handled and well edited, it tackles the difficult question of anxiety – the translation of the title – face on. The film explores the anxiety of both Felix – the depressed White character whose humanitarian experiences in Africa have left him devoid of all hope – and Dou, the Black character who shares his Parisian flat and who wants to stop him from committing the worst. The turmoil of this close relationship affects Dou and Sylvie’s relationship, as Sylvie does not understand why Dou neglects her in this way. The film is at its best when it plays on metaphors: a piece of string tied around a toe designating protection, a head underwater in the bath symbolizing desperation, intimate gestures evoking the relations between Africa and Europe… Indeed, Konorofili‘s force is that it positions itself on the terrain of the body. Relationships are reflected in the flow of the dancing at a party or in the omnipresent cultural blending, in the city traffic, or when to embrace means to hug one another… But the message remains the misunderstanding that results in death, and Konorofili leaves the bitter taste of an irresolvable ambiguity. And leaves you wanting to see more, more films in short!
