Power of Music Documentary ëAmandla!í Resists Apartheid Through Song by Ky N. Nguyen Amandla! A Revolution in Four Part Harmonyî provides unique insight into the motivational power of music, taken to an extreme in the long struggle against South Africaís policy of apartheid from 1948 to 1993. ìAmandla!îówhich means ìpowerî in Xhosaóuses standard documentary techniques enlivened by powerful protest songs, notable archival footage, and compelling if somewhat excessive use of interviews. American director Lee Hirsch, a veteran of South African music videos, achieves considerable familiarity with his subjects, providing highly personal accounts. For instance, South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela notes that American Dizzy Gillespie longed to join the anti-apartheid movement, where everyone was singing and dancing. Previously exiled Masekela performs ìThe Train Songîódecrying the separations imposed on families by apartheid. In 1964, the South African government executed composer Vuyisile Mini, who wrote ìBeware Verwoerdîótargeted at the inventor of apartheid, in which the white minority segregat ed and repressed the black majority. ìAmandla!î traces its way through the history of apartheid beginning with the all-white National Partyís assumption of power, including the Population Registration Act (requiring racial categorization), the Group Areas Act (mandating relocation and restricting black access to white areas), and the Pass Laws (requiring blacks to carry a passbook). Activist Nelson Mandela urged blacks to refuse to carry passbooks in a nonviolent protest. In the 1970s Sharpeville massacre, police shot about 60 unarmed blacks following Mandelaís protest. Mandela was subsequently arrested and jailed for more than 20 years. After decades of global pressure against apartheid, free elections took place in 1993, installing Mandela as president of South Africa. ìAmandla! A Revolution in Four Part Harmonyî (English and Zulu with subtitles; 108 min.) opens Friday, March 7 at Visions Cinema/Bistro/Lounge. ëSpiderí: Web of Memories With ìSpider,î vanguard Canadian director David Cronenberg weaves a tricky web of memories, viewed from the perspective of mentally unstable Dennis Cleg, nicknamed Spider (Ralph Fiennes). Cronenbergís directorial mastery is on full display as he creates Spiderís universe, a visually rich atmosphere of dread and paranoia. With distinctive cinematography and production design, ìSpiderî is a depressingly effective psychological study thatís difficult to digest. After years in a mental institution, the physically hesitant Spider makes his way from the train station to an east London halfway house run by strict Mrs. Wilkinson (Lynn Redgrave). Older resident Terrence (John Neville) is friendly but eerie. Returning to the neighborhood of his youth, Spider begins to live through vivid childhood memories of himself (Bradley Hall), his father (Gabriel Byrne), his mother (Miranda Richardson), and his fatherís lover (Richardson). Eventually, it becomes difficult to ascertain whatís really happening. Cronenberg and Fiennes succeed in depicting the warped if logical workings of Spiderís twisted mind. The acting is first rate, led by Fiennes in the riveting, controlled portrait of Spider. Heís abetted by fine performances from Byrne, Richardson (as dual characters), Redgrave, Neville and Hall. ìSpiderî (English; 98 min.) opens Friday, March 14, in the Washington, D.C., area, including Cinema Arts. Gilliam ëLost in La Manchaí In the enlightening documentary ìLost in La Mancha,î the enduring image of maverick British filmmaker Terry Gilliam is that of a mad scientist, albeit a generally cheery one. He valiantly battles the forces of fate and nature in an eventually futile attempt to make his film, ìThe Man Who Killed Don Quixote,î an adaptation of Miguel Cervantesís classic novel. American directors Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe started out shooting a conventional behind-the-scenes documentary. ìItís got a lot of potential for chaos here,î says Gilliam (ìBrazil,î ìTime Banditsî) early on in the picture. Gilliamís reputation as an out-of-control director reached a peak with the budget excesses of 1989ís ìThe Adventures of Baron Munchausen,î a commercial failure that now retains a cult following. Despite rebounding with ìThe Fisher Kingî and ì12 Monkeys,î Gilliamís past haunts him on the set of ìQuixote,î a project requiring 10 years of pre-production. The quixotic figure started shooting after he cobbled together $32 million of European financing, despite the figure being less than half of what he actually needed. After seemingly endless delays, actors Jean Rochefort, Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis finally all arrived. Then, rainstorms and injury provided insurmountable obstacles, leaving Gilliam in a class with Orson Wellesóanother nonconformist director who never completed filming his version of ìDon Quixote.î ìLost in La Manchaî (English, French and Spanish with subtitles; 93 min.) is now playing at Cineplex Odeon Inner Circle and Landmarkís Bethesda Row. Colombian Campaign ìMissing Peaceî tells the captivating story of reformist Colombian Senator and presidential aspirant Ingrid Betancourt. In February 2002, three months before the election, she was kidnapped by a guerrilla group while attempting to broker a peace deal. The charismatic Betancourt grew up in a family of diplomats and devoted her career to establishing peace in Colombia and fighting corruption. In one stunning clip, she even publicly denounces the graft in her own party. Journalist Victoria Bruce met Betancourt while both were on book tours in the United States. Bruce and Karin Hayes, both Washington-area filmmakers, decided to make a documentary about Betancourtís campaign. Days after her kidnapping, they flew to Colombia to shoot the developing events that changed the focus of their project. Betancourtís husband Juan Carlos Lecompte continued campaigning on her behalf, wielding a cardboard figure of the missing candidate. Because of the circumstances, ìMissing Peaceî was hastily shot with less than ideal conditions and a minimal budget. The documentary compensates for the modest production values with compelling drama, intimate interviews, and extensive use of effective images. ìMissing Peaceî (English and Spanish with subtitles; 82 min.) will screen at the DC Independent Film Festival at AMC Mazza Gallerie. It won the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Slamdance Film Festival. The Four Seasons ìThe Tree of Life,î directed by Farhad Mehranfar (ìPaper Airplanesî), creates a picturesque and colorful ethnographic document of the little-known Talesh tribe. Dwelling in the misty forests of the Talesh mountains in Iranís Gilan province, the nomadic Talesh herders still live in accordance with the ancient rhythms of nature. Though slim in plot, the film offers a visual feast contemplating the herdersí rigorously difficult lifestyle, which is inherently structured around the seasons. The Talesh ceremonies are lavishly depicted, conveying the peopleís spiritualism intertwined with nature, and the exquisite cinematography, deftly using color, captures the breathtaking beauty of the landscapes. Told as a sort of fable, the film is narrated by an old woman who recounts the history of the tribe through birth, death and love. In midwinter, antelopes are ritually slaughtered, their crimson blood staining the glaring white snow. When a child is born, his mother tells him a love story, recalling her courtship with his gloomy father. She also describes the story of the upcoming spring and the mystery of a flowerís color. ìThe Tree of Life (Derakht-e-jan)î (Farsi with subtitles; 73 min.) plays at the Environmental Film Festival on Wednesday, March 15, at Visions Cinema/Bistro/Lounge. Ky N. Nguyen is the film reviewer for The Washington Diplomat. Repertory Notes The massive Environmental Film Festival once again engages venues all across Washington with global films from March 13 to 23. (http://dcenvironmentalfilmfest.org) The DC Independent Film Festival and Market (DCIFF) runs through March 6, with most screenings at AMC Mazza Gallerie. On March 2 at 3 p.m. (location TBA), Iíll be serving on a panel discussion with other area film critics. ((202) 537-9493, http://dciff.org) < br> At the National Gallery of Art, spiritual Russian director Alexander Sokurovís retrospective includes his recently released one-shot wonder ìRussian Ark.î ((202) 842-6799, www.nga.gov/programs/film.html) On March 7, the Freer Gallery of Art begins the series Adoor Gopalakrishnan: Poet Laureate of Indian Cinema. On March 29, four films comprise the Cherry Blossom Festival Anime Marathon. ((202) 357-2700, www.asia.si.edu/events/films.asp) The Goethe-Forum continues its series Germany in the Crosshairs, a program featuring popular German TV crime movies ((202) 289-1200, www.goethe.de/uk/was/enindex.html) --Ky N. Nguyen