Saloum

The Bangui Hyenas are a legendary three-man mercenary army. Following the violent freeing of a drug dealer in Guinea-Bissau, they discover that their plane has been sabotaged, and are forced to make an emergency landing in the remote Sine-Saloum region of Senegal. Searching for fuel and tools, they come across a holiday camp. There, they meet a deaf-mute woman and a police officer who recognise them. They are threatened with arrest, but this is nothing compared to the dark forces unleashed when the troubled past of Bangui Hyena leader Chaka is revealed.

Saloum is a supernatural thriller, superhero film, Southern, and buddy movie, all in one. Debut director Jean Luc Herbulot has clearly been inspired by Sergio Leone’s spaghetti westerns, Kurosawa Akira’s samurai films, and the stylised genre films of Kim Jee-Woon, but adds some unmistakeable African mythology to the mix. Atmospheric footage of the Senegalese coast adds to the local colour of this universal story of friendship, betrayal, abuse of power, and above all revenge.

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