The children of the Mseyas family—Alberina, Maria, Amos, and Orsolina—are four of the estimated 11 million orphans in Africa who have lost their parents to AIDS. Living in Iringa, Tanzania, the siblings have cared for themselves since the death of their father in 2004. Filmmaker Gustavo Vizoso's The Mseyas mostly employs a cinéma vérité approach, tagging along with the children as they cut and gather grass, cook dinner, attend school, and celebrate Mass, capturing their activities and interactions in graceful, well-composed shots that often illustrate the struggle to survive, such as when the two older sisters worry about coming up with 800 Tanzanian shillings (about 64 cents) to cover expenses. But their everyday lives are not necessarily bleak: frequently, we see the children playing and singing, and it's evident that they share a deep sense of caring and sacrificing for one another, which becomes evident when the oldest sibling, Alberina, tells the family's story. Talking directly to the camera without apparent prompts (hers is the only commentary in the film), Alberina describes how she has shouldered responsibilities at an early age, giving up a life in the city of Dar es Salaam in order to support her younger siblings while they go to school, all the while hoping that conditions will improve. Putting a human face on incomprehensible statistics, The Mseyas offers a glimpse—in the daily lives of these orphaned children—of the enormous consequences of AIDS in Africa. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (J. Wadland)
The Mseyas
(2007) 72 min. In Swahili w/English subtitles. DVD: $225. Third World Newsreel. PPR. Volume 23, Issue 4
The Mseyas
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