Review: DEATH METAL ANGOLA Rocks Our World

Angola is the very definition of a war-torn African nation. The country endured almost constant war for the forty years prior to 2002. A lasting peace accord was finally reached, but four decades of violence have decimated Angola's cultural legacy, and left a populace deeply wounded by the ravages of war. 

This is the backdrop for Death Metal Angola, a documentary about the surprising, and thriving, death metal scene in the West African country. Anchoring this inspired film is an almost transcendental couple; Sonia Ferreira and Wilker Flores live and breathe hardcore rock and roll, and dream of holding the first-ever national rock concert in their war-torn city of Huambo. They also run the Okutiuka Orphanage, where Ferreira is "mother" to 55 children. These youths prove to be a constant presence in the film, and one of it's many delights as we watch the music take root in them. 

However, it is the film's adults who draw their daily inspiration from death metal. This is by no means a concert film and requires no love of death metal to enjoy, but it will show you the music through new eyes, and your ears will hear differently afterwards. Mostly, however, it's a film about the power of music to help humans heal and strive in the face of adversity. Rest assured, if you happen to like death metal then this film will definitely tickle that fancy. It will probably also shred your perceptions of what metal can mean.

The cinematography and imagery deserve special mention. The film takes place in the concrete world of the orphanage; decomposing walls with rotting paint and plaster are riddled with bullet holes and bomb damage, and covered in the fading artwork of past Okutiuka orphans. It's a potent environment, and Director Jeremy Xido wields it to great effect, employing still imagery of these wounded walls to visually narrate as Ferreira and Wilker reflect on life and loss, and rock and roll. It works magnificently.

The film opened nationwide in the US on Friday, and is now available on iTunes.