The African Desperate
MUBI | Release Date: September 16, 2022 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
72
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 9 Critic Reviews
Positive:
8
Mixed:
1
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
The New York TimesDevika GirishSep 15, 2022
Drawn from Syms’s own experiences as a visual artist, The African Desperate is less an art-school parody as it is a portrait of existential incongruity, where contempt mingles with deep affection. Read full review
88
RogerEbert.comPeyton RobinsonSep 23, 2022
Martine Syms has a singular voice, flowing with creativity. Using her own background as an artist, Syms has taken artistic academia and the whiplash of exiting the comfort of school and churned it into a jungle juice of weed, ketamine, and self-discovery. Read full review
83
IndieWireSusannah GruderSep 15, 2022
With its everyday setting and social interactions mixed with an obtrusive, innovative soundtrack (composed by the band Aunt Sister, along with Colin Self and Ben Babbit) and hyperactive visual style, The African Desperate straddles the line between shock and banality. Read full review
83
The Film StageLeonardo GoiSep 2, 2022
The African Desperate is an electrifying, riveting odyssey, and Stingily—with her deadpan humor and no-nonsense swagger—makes its ending all the more cathartic. Read full review
80
Film ThreatAlex SavelievSep 19, 2022
Syms’ debut is anything but desperate; au contraire, this is the mark of a relaxed, confident filmmaker with a long, bright future. Read full review
78
Paste MagazineAndrew CrumpSep 19, 2022
Syms packs The African Desperate with pleasing ingenuity that facilitates its complex perspective; this is a film that must be sat with to fully appreciate. Read full review
75
The PlaylistMark AschSep 2, 2022
The African Desperate is the work of an artist who has moved fairly seamlessly from the gallery to the cinema and has more than enough vitality and insight to join the canon of films about the Black experience in higher education Read full review
63
Slant MagazineWilliam RepassSep 14, 2022
That The African Desperate is a send-up of art school is beyond doubt, but what’s less clear is just how far the satire goes. Read full review
40
The GuardianPeter BradshawOct 17, 2022
Stingily is relaxed and amiable, but in acting terms there may be nothing else there and the film doesn’t develop in any interesting direction. Read full review
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