A fatal accident that binds two Sudanese women
Daniel Nelson
Goodbye Julia Is perfect proof that the personal is political.
It tells the story of two women whose lives are intimately and inextricably entwined after an accident in which one of them accidentally kills the other’s son in a road accident.
Their husbands are also linked, unknowingly, by a killing that is rapidly covered up.
One of the women is Muslim, the other Christian; one is an Arab northerner, the other an African southerner. One is comfortably off, the other (played by a former Miss Sudan) is a roadside hawker. One is barren, the other (played by an actor spotted on a YouTube channel) has a son.
It takes place in a country that is splitting in two, divided by race, culture and religion.
Director Mohamed Kordofani assembles these elements into an absorbing film, in which the personal is uppermost - it deals with all-too-human characters - but the political is never far from their words and actions.
In the context of Sudan, that puts racism centre-stage. In an interview with Deadline, Kordofani said people in south Sudan “felt like second-class citizens for 50 years. I also felt responsible for that [secession] vote because I reviewed my history and realised that I was part of this racist system. I didn’t know any Southern people. Although there were millions in Khartoum, the only one I knew was a maid…. It was shocking to me that a whole nation would want to secede from you. It was obvious that it was nothing to do with wealth-sharing or politics, it was basically racism that we don’t like to admit but it’s a reality.”
Sudanese Arab racism against Black Africans is explicit in the film, and is a source of tension in the northern couple’s strained marriage. One of the themes of the story is the way the wife, Mona, understands and tries to overcome her racism, as well as her personal independence. (So let’s hear it for the broadmindedness of the committee that chose the film to be Sudan’s second submission for the Academy Awards best international feature film: “This only shows how resilient and hopeful people in Sudan can be.”)
Kordofani’s idealism is expressed in the way he uses music to show that people can meet across the political and cultural divide.
Demonstrations and teargas in Khartoum halted filming many times, and the reality of tensions in the country are reflected in the characters and incidents. All in all, this is a remarkable film. It’s beautifully acted and filmed, gripping and humane. A tremendous achievement.
+ Goodbye Julia is showing as part of the Muslim International Film Festival, 30 May- 2 June. Info: https://www.eventslondon.org/recommended/london-hosts-gthe-first-muslim-international-film-festival