Title: La Chapelle (The Chapel)
Director: Jean-Michel Tchissoukou
Year of Release: 1980
Language: Lingala, French
Run time: 80 minutes.
“Death is universal and dying is natural. Everything here has a beginning and an end.”
Religious and customary practices are usually among the first cultural elements targeted during colonial campaigns, and the case of Africa presents a perfect example of this fact. Before the invasion of the continent, communities maintained religious beliefs and practices that were sacred to their identity. However, these practices were swiftly condemned as barbaric and heathen on the arrival of the colonial powers, and they were replaced by new and foreign practices. This erosion of traditional African practices has been the subject of some of the most significant artistic works from the continent, and Jean-Michel Tchissoukou’s 1980 film, La Chapelle, is one of such works.
Tchissoukou was born in the Republic of Congo while it was still under colonial rule, and he must have witnessed the clashes between traditional practices and western religion firsthand. Like many of the filmmakers that were to emerge in post-colonial francophone Africa, he travelled to France to study filmmaking. On his return to Africa, he worked for the Congolese national television channel in various capacities ranging from an animator to camera operator. It was during this period that he made Illusions (1970), the short film that served as his debut. His talents were recognised by Sarah Maldoror, and she enlisted him to work as an assistant director on her magnum opus, Sambizanga (1972). Armed with invaluable experience, Tchissoukou decided to make his first feature film ten years after making his debut.
Set in the 1930s, La Chapelle follows the inhabitants of Toulou, a village in Congo, as they navigate the realities of colonialism. In an effort to ‘civilise’ the locals, the colonial representatives prohibit all traditional religious practices and forcefully convert the village chief to Catholicism. The villagers are then instructed to build a chapel in their community, a task that is to be overseen by Joachim, a local convert and assistant to the catholic priest stationed in the village. The villagers are unenthusiastic about the task since they are not being paid, and the building efforts progress very slowly to the annoyance of the catholic priest. The locals also continue to patronise the traditional priest, and many (including Joachim) are torn between traditional and western practices
Meanwhile, a young man from a neighbouring village is sent to assist the local school, but he ends up mingling with the youth and stirring hearts and minds against the colonial effort. When the chapel is suddenly set on fire one night, the flames go on to ignite brewing tensions between the old and the new, leading to an inevitable conclusion.
Filmmaking in the Republic of the Congo was sparse prior to La Chapelle, and the only film of note at the time was Sébastien Kamba’s The Ransom of an Alliance (1974). Thus, Tchissoukou was building on the foundations that Kamba had laid, and the lack of film infrastructure and expertise did not prevent him from realising his vision. With funding from the National Office of Cinema (of which he was the Director of Programming at the time) through the French government, Tchissoukou was able to deliver a film that bravely explored the colonial campaign against African cultural institutions.
The contrasts between traditional and western religions feature heavily throughout the film, but Tchissoukou also subtly suggests similarities between the practices. Most notably, a scene featuring a procession hymn sung by the villagers in the uncompleted chapel is followed by a shot of another set of the villagers chanting inside the shrine of the traditional priest. This juxtaposition raises as many similarities as it suggests differences, and it is no wonder that many of the villagers are shown to concurrently partake in the practices of both religions.
The film refrains from laying blame solely at the feet of the colonialists. The complicity of some of the locals in the advancement of the colonial cause is significantly explored, and the actions of Joachim show just how Africans constituted willing tools in the hands of the colonial government. Joachim is always eager to suggest the use of armed soldiers to force the completion of the chapel, and when these soldiers finally show up, they wreak a sort of havoc that the town has never experienced.
One of the film’s greatest strengths is its ability to juggle multiple genres at once. Along with the dramatic clash of cultures that forms the main theme, a romantic arc between the young teacher and the village chief’s daughter is explored on screen. Concurrently, another character’s psychological troubles and eventual spiral into madness is examined, and Joachim’s comedic oscillations between catholic and traditional practices provide a satirical undertone that creates some of the films memorable interactions.
Although the cast consists of amateur actors, many of whom were experiencing a production of such a relatively large scale for the first time, they still manage to do justice to the script. Flashes of inexperience are overshadowed by the heart in the message of the film, and it is no wonder that Tchissoukou took home the prize for the most authentic African film at the 7th FESPACO in 1981.
Ironically, La Chapelle was one of many films made with French coproduction, an arrangement that has been criticised for its tendencies to corrupt the authenticity of a director’s efforts. With French funding came French control, and the rights to La Chapelle (as well as many other films co-produced by the French) remain in the hands of institutions that make it difficult for Africans to access. La Chapelle premiered at the second edition of the Nantes Three Continents Festival in 1980, and it also screened at the 1981 FESPACO. Since it was commissioned for non-commercial purposes by the French, there was no real attempt to distribute the film, and it was largely unseen after its festival run.
Tchissoukou, like his film, remains a largely unknown character even among African cinephiles. He lost his position as Director of Programming at the National Office of Cinema shortly after he directed his second feature, The Wrestlers (1982) which did not enjoy the same acclaim as La Chapelle. He died on Christmas eve in 1987, although many publications (even his Wikipedia page) erroneously list his year of death as 1997. This lack of recognition is a fate that many pioneers of African cinema have suffered, and it is unfortunate that we may never be able to celebrate those who worked tirelessly to cultivate a film culture within the continent.
Fortunately, Tchissoukou and his films (mostly La Chapelle) have begun to receive attention from various quarters. The Congolese government organised a screening of La Chapelle in 2018 to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Tchissoukou’s passing, and the film was restored in 2023 thanks to the efforts of the French Institute’s Africa Cinematheque. The film has featured in a few film festivals of recent, and more screenings of the newly restored version are expected soon. If you ever get the chance to see it, we urge you to!
