It's the fifth night since acclaimed independent film maker Haile Gerima's Teza debuted at the Avalon, on 5612 Connecticut Ave., NW, and the film is still packing the house. The crowd is mixed, but overall, rather young - 20s and 30s. Action. Romance. Historical facts. Humor. "Teza" has it all. Gerima, an Ethiopian American and professor of film at Howard University, spent 15 years perfecting "Teza" and audiences are loving it.
"Teza" is narrated in Amharac, one of the key languages of Ethiopia, with subtitles in German and English. The story is told through the eyes of a man named Anerber, played by Aaron Arefe. Anerber is a passionate young man who grew up in Ethiopia, but left to study medicine in Germany during the repressive regime of Ethiopian dictator Haile Mariam Mengistu.
While in Germany, Anerber grows as an intellectual, finds and loses love, and builds life-long friendships. Yet, in the end, he remains loyal to his country and returns to his homeland in hopes of curing the sick and making a difference in Ethiopia. However, when he returns, he is greeted by violence, death, poverty, illness, and the reality check that while he was away, time did not stop. Instead, things worsened in Ethiopia, and with Mengistu in power, Anerber is helpless.
The fact that "Teza" was filmed in Ethiopia and the actors were Ethiopian, validated the film and made it seem that much more realistic. Several scenes in the film are simply breathtaking.
As shots of the Ethiopian, fiery red sun gently fall behind the quiet lake, it paints a beautiful reflection in the water of soft reds, vibrant oranges, and golden yellows. A soft raspy voice sings an ancient proverb over the Ethiopian drums and the audience "ooh" and "aww," mesmerized.
Throughout the film, Anerber goes through constant internal battle as he struggles to find himself and his place in the world. The story is largely told through flashbacks and as the movie jumps around between the 1970s, 80s, and 90s it is important to keep up, or else you will get lost.
The dialogue in the movie is in Amharic and German, so the entire film has English subtitles. Thus, the film requires a lot of reading, but viewers don't seem to mind.
James Malon, a student at American University, explained, "I'll be honest, at first the subtitles were a little intimidating, but by the end of the film, I completely forgot that I was reading because the movie was so good!"
"Teza" is a must see. Persons of all ages and backgrounds will walk away with something different from the film, but one thing is for sure, most will walk away feeling as though they got their money's worth.
"Teza," 140 mins at the Avalon Theatre, 5612 Connecticut Ave, NW. Show times are 1:30, 4:45 and 8:15.
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