I found a lovely documentary about the photographer Malick Sidibe, in Mali. In the 1960s and 1970s he photographed the nightlife and developing youth culture of Mali.

It was quite unusual to be an independent photographer back then. The culture and politics of Mali seem to have been ultra orthodox and the club and beach scene (the dolce vita of the title) was understood as a form of hedonistic rebellion…This background also provided a lovely soundtrack for the film. Terrific.

The best parts of this film were when Malick and his mates were hanging out in the studio chatting about the old days, when they were young. That was lovely.

It turns out the guys in Mali often have several wives, and loads of kids. That background wasn’t really explained in enough detail…and we didn’t hear enough from the women in the story. That was a shame.