‘The Burial of Kojo’ Film Review: Magical Realism in Accra
The Ghanaian film, The Burial of Kojo, is a gift to self, offered as a collective experience which expands on African oral traditions and allegories of a metaphysical journey. The film sparks a vital conversation about the intersections of heritage, politics, and spirituality in Ghana and in Africa at large.
It is a tale of two brothers, Kojo and Kwabena, whose tumultuous relationship spirals when Kwabena’s wife dies on their wedding night in an accident caused by Kojo. The story is told through the voice of Kojo’s young daughter Esi. Embodying the future, Esi represents a generation tackling a complex conversation between the present and an ancestral plane of sorts, where her dreams lead her to uncover truths about the masked rivalry between her father and uncle Kwabena. Playing on facets of time and space through a magical realist lens, the non-linear plot, the film unfolds with Esi caring for a Sacred Bird that is hunted by a mysterious crow; lending it a thread of symbolism and foretelling. When her father goes missing, Esi sets the Sacred Bird free to encounter him again. As her mother Ama and a local detective struggle to locate Kojo, she is often shown running, alluding to the pressures of running out of time. Esi is also wise beyond her years, taking on the role of her father’s keeper in a tender relationship where they are ever-present in spirit and flesh…
Originally published: “Magical Realism in Accra” (Africa is A Country)
