Reassemblage (1982): Trinh Minh ha

Reassemblage, a 1982 documentary by Trinh Minh ha, is an experimental documentary which stands out from typical documentation norms in a number of ways.

The first time I viewed this film, I found myself feeling confused and disoriented, which led me to not have a very pleasurable and entertaining initial experience with this documentary.  It was difficult for me to make sense of the sporadic sounds and voiceover which appeared to be untimely with the images shown on screen.  The film also consisted of the simple observation of people carrying out every day life in 1980s Senegal, which, without a storyline or much excitement, lost my attention as the film went on.

However, once I finished the film, I read the transcript for Reassemblage and slowly began to make sense of what I had just seen and understand its significance.  Lines like "a film about what?  A film on Senegal; but what in Senegal?" and "I do not intend to speak about, just speak nearby" stuck out to me as lines which captured the essence of what Minh ha was trying to get at in her documentary.

I slowly began to understand what makes her documentary so unique, despite my initial disinterest in it.  The typical documentary style includes an interaction with the subject matter being documented by the filmmaker.  The filmmaker takes the subject matter and interprets it in such a way that viewers are able to learn about whatever it is that is being documented.

However, Minh ha recognizes the way so-called developed countries view so-called undeveloped countries and refrains from trying to interpret Senegal from this lens.  Instead of observing and translating the daily occurrences of life in a so-called undeveloped country in a way that those in a so-called developed country can understand, she instead presents life as it is.  In doing so, she attempts to refrain from inflicting any of her interpretations onto viewers.  This is unlike many other documentaries, especially those about so-called undeveloped countries, in that many documentaries portrayed the people and culture as something that is very "other."  Or something that needs interpretation because it is just so different from our lives in this so-called developed country that it takes an interpreter to understand.

In addition to this, I grew to like this film because of its observational nature.  When taking a step back, it is quite a unique experience to get to see a different part of the world captured in a different part of time as if you are an invisible spectator.  Most people will never travel to Senegal in their lifetime, let alone this specific place.  None of us will ever be able to visit in the year 1982 and encounter those same people at that exact point in their life.  Lastly, none of us will be able to simply observe life like this, as if we were invisible.  It is an entirely unique experience.  I feel as though I am so used to narrative cinema and its constant excitement and feeding of information that it took watching this twice to truly appreciate how notable of a film and experience Reassemblage is.