Western Media Misrepresentation of Africa in Cinema

Inaccurate representation of Africa in Western media has led to non-African envisioning mud huts, hunting/violence or tribes when they picture the continent in their minds. The problematic issue of generalising the African continent is also tied to this issue, meaning that lots of areas of Africa are grouped within these stereotypes, and the media is also a strong factor in linking this phenomenon. Whether it's stereotypical depictions, generalisation or portraying inaccurate customs and accents, there’s no shortage of examples to choose from

Black Panther

You don’t need to be black or African to see the massive positive impact this film had on the reputation of both African and black people. ‘African culture’ was finally on full display in a positive and heroic context; the movie grossed over $1 billion, and the majority black cast and crew became cult heroes for many. Black Panther was a net positive in showcasing Africa positively and powerfully in cinema, but the film received its own share of criticism. The home country of Wakanda is meant to be in East Africa, bordering Kenya, South Sudan and Ethiopia, yet the Wakandan people speak with vaguely West African accents, or at least no hint of East Africa in their accents. As well as this, the Wakandan national language, Xhosa, originates in Southern African countries like Zimbabwe and Lesotho. Wakanda is meant to be a strong, empowered nation, yet the person who delivers the fatal blow to Kilmonger’s plan to recolonise the wider world is a white CIA agent, and the country is still victim to being run by a stereotypical wealthy group of elites who squabble amongst themselves.

Ultimately, Black Panther’s cultural impact and commercial success made it a platform to celebrate African heritage, and this is a positive consequence that should be celebrated. However, the story does fall victim to stereotypical elements and inconsistent representation, and if Africa is to continue to be celebrated and upheld in media, we should recognise these inconsistencies and ask for more.

Black Hawk Down

Black Hawk Down is a standard depiction of American soldiers as brave heroes fighting an evil foreign enemy, but it caused serious damage to the reputation of Somalis across the globe. The Somali Justice Action Centre (SJAC) in California and Minnesota called for a boycott of the film, due to its dehumanising depiction of Somali’s as “savage beasts shooting each other.” As well as this, the film tried to make the violence seem one-sided, ignoring thousands of Somali deaths caused by Americans, and removing several scenes asking questions of the violent reality of conflict in Africa involving the US. It seems difficult to imagine how a film can portray Africa so poorly, and the fact that no Somali actors were used is the cherry on top.  

Tears of the Sun

While not as controversial as Black Hawk Down, Tears of the Sun is a strong example of the use of stereotypical imagery, minimising a real and brutal conflict in the name of commercial success. The film centres around a US Navy SEAL rescue mission of a nurse from a Nigerian jungle hospital. This is already ironic, given that only 12% of Nigeria’s land is covered by forests, and ties into the animalistic view taken of Africa in general by Western media. Director Antoine Fuqua also mentioned that he felt the studio shifted from his vision of a gritty, realistic portrayal of how war has affected the livelihoods of Nigerians, but the film pivoted from this vision to more of an action film. This could have been a movie which challenged audience perceptions of Africa and made the audience truly ask questions about the ordinary people who fall victim to war, yet it chose to be a forgettable 2000s action movie instead.

Film and TV have always been a fantastic medium to make people think about concepts that don’t affect them, and given the size of the industry, there must come a point when directors stop relying on stereotyping and inaccurate portrayals of Africans to make money. There has been progress, films like Queen of Katwe, The Woman King and Blood Diamond rely less on stereotyping in favour of authentic portrayals of African nations, but historically Africa has fallen victim to media misrepresentation, and this reality should be accepted so it can be changed in the future.