Year of production : 2010 Format : Feature Running time : 98 (in minutes) http://vivariva.com/
The breathless story of the rise and fall of Riva, a Congolese smuggler who makes a fortune overnight and is hunted down in Kinshasa.
Kinshasa is a city of silky smooth and pulsating nightlife, always ready to go on forever. The happy few who have it all live the high life, never looking back on those who have nothing and live in envy, dreaming of their turn as kings and queens of the night. Riva is one of those dreamers who had nothing, until he returned from ten years away, his pockets full of cash and determined to have the time of his life. With his old pal, J.M., he sets out for a night of drink, dance and debauchery. Queen of the night, mysterious, distant beauty, Nora's dance transfixes Riva. No matter that she belongs to a local gangster, Riva must have her. Could this be something real? The money Riva is spending belongs to his old boss in Angola, who, in hot pursuit, wreaks bloody havoc every step of his way through town to find Riva. The dream becomes a nightmare, as Riva suffers the cold light of day - and his glory time runs out in a sordid pit on the edge of town.
Kinshasa is running out of gas. As traffic on the streets of the massive city thins out, an incredible mechanism is set in motion in the underworld, which picks up more and more speed. A band of smugglers from neighboring Angola has stashed some gas but this is only supposed to be sold when the prices have risen even further - and it is clear whose pockets the money will end up in. A wild, crazy struggle for the position of king of the underworld breaks out. And the smart Riva goes and falls for his rival's extremely attractive girlfriend. He starts playing with fire in the sultry Sai Sai club. The young Congo filmmaker's debut film is an action-packed thriller that was staged with as little fear as his heroes have when handling their weapons. Sex, greed and money drive the story that is told without a pause for breath, to the rhythm of a city that demands this tempo from all its inhabitants. The elegance with which Munga plays with cinematic conventions is astounding - as a genre film Viva Riva! does more than justice to Kinshasa's secret reputation as a trendsetting city in all matters of fashion. Such well-dressed gangsters have not been seen in the movies for a long time.
Title: VIVA RIVA ! Genre: Film Noir Category: Feature Film Language: French Format: 98 minutes
Starring Riva : Patsha Bay Mukuna Nora : Manie Malone César : Hoji Fortuna Commandante : Marlène Longage J.M. : Alex Herabo Azor : Diplome Amekindra Malou : Angélique Mbumba Mère Edo (Mother Edo) : Nzita Tumba Anto : Jordan N'Tunga
Directed by Djo Tunda Wa Munga
Produced by FORMOSA PRODUCTIONS, MG PRODUCTIONS AND SUKA PRODUCTIONS
Principal Cast: Patsha Bay, Manie Malone, Hoji Fortuna, Marlene Longange, Alex Herabo, Diplome Amekindra
Director: Djo Tunda Wa Munga Screenplay: Djo Tunda Wa Munga Cinematographer: Antoine Roch, AFC Editor: Yves Langlois Sound: Marianne Roussy Music: Louis Vyncke & Congopunq, Cyril Atef Production Designer: Philippe Van Herwijnen
Produced by Boris Van Gils, Michael Goldberg
Producer: Djo Tunda wa Munga Coproducer: Steven Markovitz
Length: 98 min 35mm ‐ Color - 1:1:85 - Dolby Digital
Countries: Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Belgium, South Africa Year: 2010 Language: Lingala, French Runtime: 96
Production Companies: Formosa Productions/MG Productions/Suka! Productions
Official description (TIFF 2010, Toronto) Finally! An African feature film that merges the pleasures of Nollywood with sleek camerawork, satisfying genre thrills and a rare look inside the very heart of the continent. Viva Riva! is unprecedented: a story set in contemporary Democratic Republic of the Congo full of intrigue, music and a surprisingly frank approach to sex. Riva is an operator, a man with charm and ambition in equal measure. Kinshasa is an inviting place. With petrol in short supply in DRC's capital, he and his sidekick pursue a plot to get hold of a secret cache - barrels of fuel they can sell for a huge profit. Of course they're not the only ones who want the stuff. Cesar is a ruthless, sharply dressed foreigner thriving in Kinshasa's lawless streets. A female military officer joins the fray. Even the church will betray its tenets for a piece of the action. But Riva's main nemesis is Azor, a crime boss in the classic style: big, decadent and brutal. He's not a man to mess with, but his girlfriend, Nora, may just be the most seductive woman in all of DRC. Riva catches sight of her dancing at a nightclub and it's not long before Nora matches the fuel cache as a coveted object of his lust. Shooting in high definition, Munga saturates this African genre film with rich colour and movement. The camera snakes through crowded streets and steaming nightclubs, capturing the tangible atmosphere of DRC today. As the film roves from Azor's luxury lair, to lush scenes outside the city, to the dens where sin is for sale, Viva Riva! offers a portrait of urban Africa too rarely seen on screen. Even more surprising are its scenes of urgent sensuality, as Riva pursues Nora - or perhaps it's the other way around. "The main purpose of a filmmaker," Munga has said, "is to make film where it's needed." With Viva Riva! he kick-starts a film industry in DRC, and does it with style, focus and a whole lot of sizzle. Cameron Bailey (TIFF 2010, Toronto)
Director and producer Djo Tunda Wa Munga, who also wrote the script to VIVA RIVA!, created with his first feature film a portrait of urban Africa rarely seen on screen. Munga found his actors in small Congolese theater groups and in the streets of Kinshasa. "In making Viva Riva!, I wanted to find a new way to talk about life in Kinshasa today - to describe how my hometown works and how it doesn't work," says the director. "I also felt the time was right to depict aspects of life in the capital that everyone knows exist but no one has ever talked about publicly." Variety praised the film as "a blast from start to finish (...), a mix of adrenaline and style. (…) writer-director Djo Tunda Wa Munga's VIVA RIVA! marks the Congo as an African filmmaking center to watch." Beta Film (Germany), International Sales
2010 | TIFF, TORONTO, Canada * Official Selection * World Premiere
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ES título internacional: Viva Riva título original: Viva Riva país: Francia, Bélgica, Sudáfrica año: 2011 género: ficción dirección: Djo Tunda wa Munga duración: 98' guión: Djo Tunda wa Munga reparto: Patsha Bay Mukuna, Manie Malone, Hoji Fortuna, Marlene Longage, Alex Herabo, Diplome Amekindra, Angelique Mbumba, Nzita Tumba, Jordan N'Tunga fotografía: Antoine Roch montaje: Yves Langlois escenografía: Philippe van Herwijnen música: Louis Vyncke & Congopunq productor: Boris Van Gils, Michaël Goldberg, Djo Tunda wa Munga, Steven Markovitz producción: Formosa Productions, MG Productions, Suka Productions ventas en el extranjero: Beta Film GmbH
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IT Kinshasa è una città con una frenetica vita notturna che sembra non finire mai. I pochi privilegiati che se lo possono permettere non si lasciano mancare nulla, incuranti degli altri, che possono solo coltivare l'impossibile sogno di diventare anche loro i re e le regine della notte. Riva è sempre appartenuto alla schiera dei sognatori, fino a quando, dopo un'assenza di dieci anni, torna con le tasche piene di soldi, determinato a darsi alla pazza gioia. Insieme al suo amico J.M., Riva si lancia in una notte di bevute, musica e dissolutezza. Sulla pista da ballo rimane affascinato da Nora, una donna bellissima, misteriosa e distante. Non importa se è la pupa del gangster: Riva la vuole.
Congo, Francia, Belgio · 2010 · 35 mm · Colore · 98' · v.o. francese/lingala
titolo internazionale: Viva Riva titolo originale: Viva Riva paese: Francia, Belgio, Sudafrica anno: 2011 genere: fiction regia: Djo Tunda wa Munga durata: 98' sceneggiatura: Djo Tunda wa Munga cast: Patsha Bay Mukuna, Manie Malone, Hoji Fortuna, Marlene Longage, Alex Herabo, Diplome Amekindra, Angelique Mbumba, Nzita Tumba, Jordan N'Tunga fotografia: Antoine Roch montaggio: Yves Langlois scenografia: Philippe van Herwijnen musica: Louis Vyncke & Congopunq produttore: Boris Van Gils, Michaël Goldberg, Djo Tunda wa Munga, Steven Markovitz produzione: Formosa Productions, MG Productions, Suka Productions rivenditore estero: Beta Film GmbH
Produzione Formosa Productions
Cofinova 6 invest@cofinova.com
uFilm info@umedia.eu
Coproduzione Left Field Ventures www.leftfieldventures.com
DE In Kinshasa wird das Benzin knapp. Während auf den Straßen der Verkehr erlahmt, setzt sich in der Unterwelt der Riesenstadt eine unglaubliche Maschinerie in Gang, die immer mehr an Fahrt gewinnt. Eine Schmugglerbande aus dem benachbarten Angola hat Benzin gebunkert, das aber erst verkauft werden soll, wenn die Preise noch weiter gestiegen sind - und klar ist, in wessen Taschen das Geld landen wird. Ein wilder, wahnsinniger Kampf um die Position des Königs der Unterwelt bricht aus. Und der smarte Riva verguckt sich ausgerechnet in die umwerfend schöne Freundin seines Gegenspielers. Im schwülen SaiSai-Club beginnt der Tanz auf dem Vulkan. Der Debütfilm des jungen Kongolesen ist ein rasanter Thriller, so angstfrei inszeniert, wie seine Helden mit Waffen umgehen. Sex, Gier, Gewalt und Geld treiben die atemlos erzählte Geschichte voran, im Rhythmus der Stadt, die dieses Tempo all ihren Bewohnern abverlangt. Dabei verblüfft die Eleganz, mit der Munga mit cinematografischen Konventionen zu spielen versteht - als Genrefilm wird Viva Riva! Kinshasas heimlicher Reputation als trendsetting city in sämtlichen Modeangelegenheiten mehr als gerecht. Dermaßen gut gekleidete Gangster hat man im Kino lange nicht gesehen.
Demokratische Republik Kongo, Frankreich, Belgien, 2010, 96 min Lingala, Französisch Regie: Djo Tunda Wa Munga Darsteller: Patsha Bay, Manie Malone, Hoji Fortuna, Marlene Longage, Alex Herabo, Diplôme Amekindra
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SUEDE Riva är en man med charm och ambition i ett Kinshasa där bensinen är en bristvara. Han och hans sidekick förbereder en komplott för att få tag på bränsle som de tänker sälja med stor vinst. Men de är inte de enda som smider planer. Där finns också den hänsynslöse utlänningen Cesar som trivs på Kinshasas laglösa gator, en kvinnlig officer och till och med kyrkan vill ha en bit av kakan. Men Rivas främsta hot är Azor, en maffiaboss i klassisk stil: stor, dekadent och brutal. Han är inte en man att bråka med, men hans flickvän, Nora, den vackraste kvinnan i hela Kongo, får Riva att ta risken. Snart är hon lika eftertraktad som bränslet.
Regissören: Djo Tunda wa Munga DRC/Frankrike/Belgium/Sydafrika 2010 96 min Franska, engelsk text
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