Banel & Adama

Now Playing

1h 27m

Drama

TRAILER

for Banel et Adama: Trailer 1

List

Banel et Adama: Trailer 1

1:36

View more videos

94%

Tomatometer

35 Reviews

Banel and Adama are fiercely in love. The young couple lives in a remote village in northern Senegal. For them, nothing else exists except each other. But for the rest of their tight-knit village, duty dictates that Adama soon accept the role of chief. The two lovers have other plans... until something in the air changes. The rains do not come; the cattle begin to die; the men leave. A rare debut feature that premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival, and Senegal's official submission to the Academy Awards®, Ramata-Toulaye Sy's Banel & Adama is a lush and lyrical fable that soars to the heights of longing and descends deep into the realm of myth, sending its protagonists' idyllic love on a collision course with their community's customs. Because in this world, there is no room for passion, let alone chaos.

Read More

Read Less

Now in Theaters

Now Playing

Buy Tickets

Manohla Dargis

New York Times

... You remain engaged but also find yourself wishing that all these many desperate pieces fit together more coherently.

Jun 11, 2024

Full Review

Glenn Kenny

RogerEbert.com

The directorial debut of French-Senegalese filmmaker Ramata-Toulaye Sy, this is one of those pictures to which the phrase “every frame a painting” might apply.

Rated: 3/4

Jun 7, 2024

Full Review

Diego Semerene

Slant Magazine

In the end, Banel & Adama is most memorable when it forgets to push the story forward and wallows in the painterly, or allegorical, registers of its images.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jun 3, 2024

Full Review

Josh Parham

Next Best Picture

The resulting effort is a flawed yet impressive exhibition of the trials that occur when choosing between self-gratification and communal honors.

Rated: 7/10

Jun 10, 2024

Full Review

Todd Jorgenson

Cinemalogue

Despite an ambiguous ending, the evocative film resonates with bittersweet compassion as it chronicles Banel’s quest for empowerment and self-worth.

Jun 7, 2024

Full Review

Mark Dujsik

Mark Reviews Movies

In exploring this relationship, Banel & Adama questions if love and freedom are even possible amidst a stringent belief in tradition.

Rated: 3/4

Jun 7, 2024

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Ramata-Toulaye Sy

Director

Khady Mane

Banel

Mamadou Diallo

Adama

Binta Racine Sy

Actor

Moussa Sow

Actor

Ndiabel Diallo

Actor

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

96%

87%

The Worst Person in the World

TRAILER

for The Worst Person in the World

85%

70%

Lady J

47%

73%

She Came to Me

TRAILER

for She Came to Me

8%

45%

Dream Girl 2

TRAILER

for Dream Girl 2

95%

64%

You Hurt My Feelings

TRAILER

for You Hurt My Feelings

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Banel et Adama: Trailer 1

1:36

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

Banel and Adama are fiercely in love. The young couple lives in a remote village in northern Senegal. For them, nothing else exists except each other. But for the rest of their tight-knit village, duty dictates that Adama soon accept the role of chief. The two lovers have other plans... until something in the air changes. The rains do not come; the cattle begin to die; the men leave. A rare debut feature that premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival, and Senegal's official submission to the Academy Awards®, Ramata-Toulaye Sy's Banel & Adama is a lush and lyrical fable that soars to the heights of longing and descends deep into the realm of myth, sending its protagonists' idyllic love on a collision course with their community's customs. Because in this world, there is no room for passion, let alone chaos.

Director: Ramata-Toulaye Sy
Producer: Éric Névé, Maud Leclair, Andrey Samoute Diarra, Margaux Juvénal, Souleymane Kébé, Oumar Sy
Screenwriter: Ramata-Toulaye Sy
Distributor: Kino Lorber
Production Co: La Chauve Souris, Astou Films, arte France Cinéma
Genre: Drama
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 7, 2024, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 6, 2024
Box Office (Gross USA): $22.6K
Runtime: 1h 27m