Part of the allure of Netflix is the simple act of scanning the available movies and adding to my queue. Click! Click! Add! Add! There’s a unique sense of satisfaction I get looking at my list and thinking, “Oh, yeah, Erin. Those are some great choices you have there! It’s arguably your best queue yet!”
The problem, however, is that I never seem to get around to actually watching those movies whose initial clicks gave me the feeling of having really accomplished something that day!
I finally changed that by settling in to enjoy The African Doctor (Bienvenue à Marly-Gomont), and I’m so glad I did! I’m making a concerted effort to create a more global curriculum, which has included broadening my spectrum of the francophone world.
PLOT
This movie takes place in France, but its central characters are a family from Zaïre, the modern-day Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Zantoko family moves to France after Seyolo, the father, takes a job as the only doctor in a small town in northern France. I will say that the plot is predictable: the family encounters hardships which in turn causes tension in the family, but in the end (spoiler alert!) everyone overcomes.
CULTURAL PIECES FOR FRENCH CLASSES
I didn’t know until the closing frames that the movie was based on the true story of French rapper Kamini’s father. How cool! His song “Marly-Gomont” is an easy cultural addition to this film.
An additional cultural plus is the accent. The characters speak French with enough of an African accent that upper level French students can hear it, but it’s easy to understand. A welcome change from Québécois French they get snippets of!
The African Doctor opens itself up nicely to discussion themes of racism and immigration, so particularly for teachers of AP and IB classes, this should be a new staple. Add it to your Netflix queue today!
Check out the flash sale on The African Doctor movie guides in my Teachers Pay Teachers store! 20% off until 1/15/19!
movie guide for lower levels
movie guide for upper levels
