Leaving on July 18, 1925 from Bordeaux for Dakar, Marc Allégret accompanied André Gide as secretary on a long journey of more than ten months through equatorial Africa. Marc Allégret filmed and photographed the women and men he met, their daily life, their habitats and some of their customs which do not fail to fascinate him, such as dances. This beautiful work lifted the veil on the life of tribes then unknown to the general public.
For his part, André Gide published his logbook, “Voyage au Congo, followed by Le Retour du Tchad”, which, by denouncing colonial practices, provoked a national debate on colonial policy and the criminal methods of concessionary companies. If Marc Allégret shot his first film there, he was also photographer during the trip. He made some 2,000 negatives, many of which survive. Upon his return, he embarked on a career as a filmmaker. Allégret was one of the most prolific directors of his generation. Between 1927 and 1970, he made nearly 80 films (“Fanny”, “Le Lac aux dames”, “Entrée des artistes”…), including 15 documentaries, including the two feature films “Voyage au Congo” and “With André Gide” (1952, also published by Doriane Films). “Journey to the Congo”, a moving, refined and unique film, of a rather rare aesthetic for the time, constitutes a cinematographic and historical and essential testimony.
Restoration and digitization 2K by Films du Panthéon in collaboration with Films du Jeudi, with the support of the CNC, the Cinémathèque française and the British Film Institute
With the DVD, a 48-page illustrated book with texts by Marc Allégret, André Gide, Hervé Pichard, film restoration project manager at the Cinémathèque française, Catherine Coquery-Vidrovitch, historian, Pierre Bergounioux and Mauro Coceano, the music composer for the movie. Photographs taken by Marc Allégret during the trip.
Voyage au Congo avec Andre Gide
A film by Marc Allégret
48 page DVD book
On DVD and VOD on Capuseen:
https://www.capuseen.com/films/6977-voyage-au-congo
Produced by Pierre Braunberger
http://www.dorianefilms.com
