[TV series review] : cloak and dagger

Major, Laura (2019) [TV series review] : cloak and dagger. [Review] (https://doi.org/10.1080/03057070.2019.1688048)

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Abstract

[Review of Black Earth Rising, TV series, 8 Episodes, written and directed by Hugo Blick, co-production by BBC 2/Netflix, 2018] It is not difficult to understand why the events of the Rwandan Genocide in 1994 lend themselves easily to representation in film. The genocide provoked an enduring desire to understand why its organisers were so effective in propagating the violence and why the UN, among others, failed to intervene effectively despite the events unfolding in front of its observers. Black Earth Rising, an eight-part television series aired by the BBC, is one of the first mainstream television series to approach the issue from a broader perspective, focusing on events in and around Rwanda after the genocide. It was screened in a prime-time slot for UK television and was a frequent feature of media commentary for weeks. It received largely positive reviews, in particular because of its unusually complex approach to post-conflict politics. Despite this, I was hesitant about watching the series. Fictional stories inspired by ugly truths around international political involvement in the global south are a popular theme for mainstream film and television productions. These are often excruciating to watch for the wrong reasons. The tendency to critique contemporary western involvement while unselfconsciously presenting problematic, even neocolonial, stereotypes can be particularly grating.1 Despite sincere intentions, these stories rarely escape the stereotypes about Africa that the Kenyan writer Binyavanga Wainaina forcefully protested in his article 'How to Write About Africa'.

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