A puffy suit, a bejeweled hat, and a dead body on an empty street: Rungano Nyoni sets the tone for his second feature film, On Becoming a Guinea Fowl, from the very first scene. This surreal drama focuses on systemic misogyny and the process of overcoming childhood trauma in adulthood. The Zambian film centers on Shula, who happened upon his uncle's dead body in the middle of a dark, empty street at night. His father instructed him to wait for him, and meanwhile, he saw his cousin, Nsansa, arrive drunk at the scene.
She inspected the corpse and knocked on Shula's car window. Shula had received strict instructions from his father to keep the windows rolled up, and he decided to abide by his orders. Nsansa contacted his partner, a police officer, to find out what to do next. He was told that the police van used in such cases was occupied that night, so his only option was to wait until dawn. In her dream, Shula imagined her uncle covered in sanitary pads, a visual representation of Nsansa's joke upon discovering that the closest thing to a sheet Shula had in her car was a pack of sanitary pads. Glimpses of these surreal sparks abound throughout the film, sometimes humorous and mostly intended to address the difficult task of dealing with death and trauma.
Director: Rungano Nyoni
Writer: Rungano Nyoni
Stars: Susan Chardy, Elizabeth Chisela, Roy Chisha
Shula's indifference to her uncle's passing was frowned upon by her aunts. We learn that in Zambia, women at the funeral home are expected to grieve for days, but Shula clearly had no intention of abiding by the rules. She almost felt ridiculous watching her mother roll on the airport floor, expressing her grief over the death of her little brother. Watching her relatives feign concern over the loss of a morally corrupt man was painful for Shula. Her aunts whispered and begged her to shed a few tears, but Shula remained cold. She had wanted to avoid pretending, but she was dragged from the hotel she had booked and taken home to grieve for her uncle. Shula found solace in the company of her cousins, Nsansa and Musonda. They spoke openly about her uncle's flaws and how they needed alcohol to process the act.
Rungano Nyoni gradually gets to the heart of the drama with Bhupe, a university student scarred by sexual abuse. Shula arrived at Bhupe's university to take her to the funeral home and found her cousin lying on her dorm bed. She tried to wake her, but Bhupe seemed too tired. Shula promised to handle all of Bhupe's funeral arrangements and, in return, hoped her sister would agree to accompany her. Bhupe got out of bed and, after taking a few steps, collapsed on the floor. We learn that Bhupe had been repeatedly abused by her uncle as a child.
Her depression spiraled out of control after receiving news of her abuser's death, and she allegedly attempted to poison herself. Shula admitted her to a hospital, and it was then that she learned about the video Bhupe had sent to her mother, where he spoke of the abuse he had suffered. On one hand, Shula watched her young cousin struggle to overcome the trauma, and on the other, she saw her aunts grieve and cry over the loss of her beloved brother. The contrast was nauseating, and Shula was speechless at the sight of Bhupe working in the kitchen to serve guests at the funeral home. She was told to act normal and begged her to hide her scars now that her abuser was dead.
Her agony and rage had no place in the confines of the funeral home. She was advised to forget the horror she had experienced and blend in with the rest of the grieving women. Nsansa's coping mechanism was to downplay her traumatic childhood experience and make fun of the incident to avoid spiraling into depression. She remembered being in school when Uncle Fred first abused her at a motel. She trusted him; after all, he was a father figure. But within minutes, she lost all respect for the man. She joked about how Uncle Fred tried to rape her, but couldn't get aroused. She tried to project a watered-down version of the abuse, perhaps because she wanted to believe she wasn't a victim, but a heroine who not only stopped the atrocious man from raping her but also had the courage to laugh at him. She wished she had been that woman, fierce enough to ward off the beast, and on difficult days, she preferred her version of the incident to reality.
When Bhupe was found unconscious in the kitchen, Shula and Nsansa admitted her to a hospital. The entire family chose to live in denial, risking Bhupe's life. During her stay in the hospital, Nsansa finally confessed the truth to Shula. He admitted that he couldn't protect himself at the time, and that was possibly his biggest regret. Shula didn't know what to say.
The drama unfolds from the perspective of Shula, who couldn't help but notice the deep-rooted misogyny hidden behind the traditions. She wanted to protest and hold her relatives accountable, but years of obedience to her elders and veneration of tradition had conditioned her to remain silent. Women were expected not only to weep and mourn, but also to prepare food for guests and serve the men attending the funeral according to their dietary preferences. Internalized patriarchy and the prospect of possible wealth led the female relatives to question Frederick's widow. They were unwilling to let her inherit his property, despite being fully aware of Frederick's monstrosity.
Sula was heartbroken to watch her aunts ostracize Frederick's widow, accusing her of failing to care for him and blaming her for his death. She wasn't allowed to eat, was told to relieve herself outdoors, and was reminded that she wasn't crying enough to show that she was truly sad about her husband's death. Shula felt sorry for the young woman and allowed her to use the bathroom. When she discovered that the phone Fred's widow was using had run out of battery, she decided to go to her house to get a charger. Shula felt guilty, but at the same time, she didn't know how to express her opinion and decided to help the widow with her small effort.
Shula was even more devastated upon meeting Frederick's children; she surmised that, for most of their married life, the widow had been pregnant. And she could already imagine the challenges she would face raising her children alone. The widow's grandmother fell at Shula's feet, begging her to convince her family not to take away the only refuge they had. Shula tried to comfort her and left the house, feeling even more overwhelmed. She decided to speak to her father.
She expressed how unfair the whole arrangement was. Obviously, it wasn't the widow's fault that Frederick died right outside a brothel. He had gotten her pregnant when she was eleven or twelve, and she was forced to live with the man who raped her. Shula hoped to find a solution to help her, but her father reminded her that since they couldn't interrogate a corpse, it was better to let time heal the pain. Shula assumed he had no intention of helping her, so she decided to leave. As she left, her father asked if Fred had ever tried to force himself on her, and she assured him she wasn't one of his victims.
Shula confronted her mother upon returning home. She had assumed her father knew Uncle Fred had sexually abused her when she was young, but it turned out her mother had chosen not to discuss the matter with him. Instead, she spoke with her sisters, and they unanimously decided to confront Frederick. He had promised to be a better person, but he clearly didn't keep his promise. Later, Shula's aunts spoke with Shula and Nsansa about the abuse the girls suffered. They hoped the girls would believe they felt their pain and, if they could, would have protected them. They loved the girls deeply and hoped they would understand that, although they were mourning the loss of their brother, they also felt deep sorrow for them. The only difference was that the abuser was hailed as a kind man in public, while his victims were comforted privately.
Shula and Nsansa spent the night with Bhupe in the hospital. Shula remembered watching a program about animals and birds when her uncle abused her. She had a vivid memory of the program about guinea fowl, and what stuck with her most was that when a predator approached the bird, it made a warning sound that, in a way, helped all wild animals. Shula wished she had been her family's guinea fowl. The film's title alludes to Shula's journey to find her own voice and speak out against injustice.
In the finale of "On Becoming a Guinea Fowl," Shula went to the funeral home with her cousins and all of Frederick's children. A great commotion arose at the funeral home, as it was the day Frederick's family would decide whether the widow would inherit her late husband's fortune. The widow, head bowed, tried to explain how Frederick's death was due to his drinking, something her family knew well. But she didn't get a chance to tell her side of the story, as her late husband's family dismissed her claim and accused her of not taking good care of her husband.
The widow was also blamed for not loving Frederick enough, which they believed had driven him to seek pleasure in brothels. The widow's mother begged for forgiveness on her daughter's behalf, and a sum was even paid to compensate the widow for her mistakes. Although they knelt and begged, Frederick's sisters claimed it was all an act and weren't convinced they were truly apologetic. They announced that they were to hand over the deed to the farm, the car papers, and his clothes, and that the widow would receive nothing. The two families got into a fierce argument when Shula arrived.
During the finale of "On Becoming a Guinea Fowl," we see Shula imitate the warning call of a guinea fowl. In my opinion, the ending suggests that Shula finally decided to break her silence. She had tried to be respectful of her elders and their ways, but when she saw the injustice before her eyes, she decided enough was enough. Her cousins had suffered because they had told her to keep quiet; Frederick's wife and children were about to be dragged into the street because no one had the courage to speak out about the atrocities her husband had inflicted on them.
They blamed her even though everyone knew Frederick was a morally corrupt man. Shula didn't allow her aunts to take everything from the widow. Hopefully, she and her cousins will speak openly about the abuse they suffered and work to ensure the widow and her children have a home to live in. Her gesture had the potential to encourage the women in her family to speak out and not let guilt and shame silence them.
Comments
Post a Comment