SYNOPSIS
Following his own Yaaba, and in parallel course with Mali’s Souleymane Cisse, another of Africa’s leading figures in cinema, Ouedraogo offers with Tilai a delightful and colourful touch of universal themes from a sensitive and ultimately perceptive angle.
As Saga (Rasmane Ouedraogo) returns to his village after a long absence he is confronted with the bitter fact of his beloved girl Nogma (ma Cisse) having married his father. Ostracizing himself in an act of despair and anger, Saga leaves the village only to settle in a nearby hut. However he gets frequent visits from Nogma – who confesses that she still loves him which eventually lead to incest. Unluckily, they are seen by a villager. “Tilai”, the law of the community, prescribes death as a punishment. This makes things more complex as nobody is willing to carry out such a task.
Ouedraogo conducts with remarkable acuteness a story which at first glance looks rather simple, perhaps due the modest nature of his cinematography, but which ultimately raises all sorts of questions as to the absolute or relative validity of social mores, the loyalty which members of a community give to them, and the extent to which the individual freedom and action is thwarted by them. The actors express a peculiar sadness, capturing splendidly the emotional atmosphere which the incident has spread to the village.
