Le Fardeau

Elvis Sabin Ngaibino’s second feature LE FARDEAU focuses on Rodrigue and Reine, who live together with their three children in Bangui in the Central African Republic. They are both deeply religious and participate actively in the local church, but are also hiding a secret: they are HIV-positive, at a time when the apocalyptic aura of the COVID-19 pandemic is hitting this impoverished region hard. When Rodrigue is offered a position as a pastor, the couple are forced into an ethical dilemma. As Rodrigue’s health deteriorates, Reine fights her husband’s doubts by trusting in God’s miracles. LE FARDEAU is a complex film that reveals a region’s many paradoxes, without easy answers or condescending solutions. It explores the power and perils of faith, the contradictions of religion and leadership, the social stigma of disease and the psychological effect of leaving things unsaid. The portrait of the enduring love between Reine and Rodrigue at a time of profound uncertainty holds the narrative together. Yet the film ultimately attests to the difficulty of establishing an adequate distinction between good and evil, belief and reality, individual freedom and community values. (Cristina Álvarez López) 

In the presence of Elvis Sabin Ngaibino.

Elvis Sabin Ngaibino: MAKONGO (2020)