The Silence of the Forest (2003)
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- "The Silence of the Forest" is both the story of a revolt and a quest. That of a man, Gonaba (Eriq Ebouaney), who rebels against the way the new elites manage the post-colonization period. Above all, that of this regional primary school inspector who decides to abandon everything in order to seek a reason to hope for his country, his continent, to go to the heart of the forest to help the Pygmies free themselves through education. A journey that will ultimately lead him to question the meaning of his own existence. A love song for a people of origins, a culture discriminated against within the very nation that shelters it.
- Actors:
- Eriq Ebouaney, Nadège Beausson-Diagne, Sonia Zembourou, Philippe Mory
- Directors:
- Bassek Ba Kobhio, Didier Ouenangare
- Producers:
- Guillaume de Seille, Annie Izoungou, Charles Mensah, Abderrahmane Sissako
- Writers:
- Bassek Ba Kobhio, Marcel Beaulieu, Étienne Goyemide, Didier Ouenangare
- Aka:
- Le silence de la forêt / The Forest
- Genres:
- Action & Adventure, Drama
More like The Silence of the Forest
Found in these customers lists
Reviews (1) of The Silence of the Forest
Civilised to Death - The Silence of the Forest review by griggs
The Silence of the Forest may start like a stiff soap—wooden dialogue and stilted delivery, but it slowly morphs into something more provocative. Gonaba, a European-educated African civil servent, sets out to “civilise” the BaAka, casting himself as a liberator. But this is no white saviour story—it’s a sharp reversal, with a Black man repeating colonial patterns.
Director Bassek Ba Kobhio doesn’t soften the blow. His still, wide shots underline Gonaba’s growing isolation, while Eriq Ebouany’s layered performance peels back the character’s ego and naivety. The BaAka non-actors bring authenticity and depth, never reduced to cliche.
As Gonaba’s dream’s fall apart, teh forest quietly resists him—and so does the narrative he’s built around himself. This isn’t a film about taming or exoticising, but about power, identity, and the bitter truth that simply changing the face of the coloniser doesn’t undo the damage. It’s quietly devastating by the time the silence finally arrives.