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(In Tuareg, Bambara, Arabic, and French, with English subtitles) What would it be like to live under the rule of jihadists?  From what we see in Timbuktu, it would not be at all pleasant, even for devote Muslims – singing is forbidden; women must cover even their hands with gloves (yes, in hot Mali); everyday actions are monitored by roving jihadists who seem to have nothing better to do than shout out seemingly arbitrary commands; adultery means stoning to death - not pleasant at all.  Nevertheless, outside the city of Timbuktu, in the countryside, lives the herder Kidane, who together with his beloved wife and child lives a peaceful and contented life.  So far, he has somehow dodged and ignored the harsh dictates of the jihadists.  Then a squabble with a local fisherman leads to violent confrontation and death.  Kidane’s life has just taken a bad turn, and he knows justice must be done. Now everything will change for him and his little family.  Despite the harshness of the surrounding desert, Mali is rich in its culture and heritage, until the jihadists come with their nonsensical rules, easily broken with impunity by these fundamentalist Muslims themselves.  And when it comes to doling out punishment, they know how and to whom to apply it, without mercy and seemingly without purpose or even a second thought.  Sissako also directed Waiting for Happiness, owned by HCPL.



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