Courtesy Of Neon
JAIL TALES Koné plays a newcomer to a dreaded prison who must spin stories to survive in Lacôte's gritty fable.
Our streaming entertainment options are overwhelming — and not always easy to sort through. This week, I watched a prison drama from Ivory Coast that was short-listed for the 2021 Academy Awards. An inventive blend of realism and fable,
Night of the Kings streams through the Vermont International Film Foundation's Virtual Cinema through April 15. Find more info at vtiff.org.
The deal
In most prisons, the warden's word is law. In Abidjan's notorious La MACA prison, we're told, the inmates themselves choose their king. For years, that has been Blackbeard (Steve Tientcheu), but now illness has painted a target on his forehead. Tradition requires an ailing king to surrender his throne and his life, but Blackbeard won't go down without a fight.