critics consensus

Though it doesn't fully capture the electrifying spirit of its subject, Finding Fela! is a solid overview of the life and work of a musical revolutionary. Read critic reviews

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Finding Fela Photos

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Movie Info

Filmmaker Alex Gibney uses period interviews and performances plus highlights of the Broadway production of "Fela!" to tell the story of Afrobeat music pioneer Fela Kuti.

Genre:

documentary
Original Language:

English
Director:

Alex Gibney
Producer:

Alex Gibney, Jack Gulick
Release Date (Streaming):

Apr 3, 2016
Runtime:

2h

Cast & Crew

Yeni Kuti

Femi Kuti

Seun Kuti

Bill T. Jones

Tony Allen

Ogugua Iwelu

Show all Cast & Crew

News & Interviews for Finding Fela

Critics Consensus: Guardians of the Galaxy is Certified Fresh

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Critic Reviews for Finding Fela

All Critics (56) | Top Critics (27) | Fresh (33) | Rotten (23)

The problem isn't really finding Fela, but containing him.

September 12, 2014 | Rating: 2/4 | Full Review…

J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader
Gibney unearths a wealth of archive footage that reaffirms Kuti's superstar status, and watches as Jones wrestles with the contradictions that made the musician such a troublesome icon - confronting some, sidestepping others.

September 7, 2014 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

Mark Kermode
Observer (UK)
Fela died in the late 1990s but Gibney has assembled plenty of footage of him performing, and he makes a convincing case for him as both a political and a musical visionary (and a relentless womaniser).

September 5, 2014 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

Geoffrey Macnab
Independent (UK)
Finding Fela fully earns its two-hour running time, and could easily have sustained more, such is the wealth of material and music, and such is the brisk momentum maintained by Gibney and editor Lindy Jankura.

September 5, 2014 | Full Review…

Sam Davies
Sight & Sound
Kuti made politics to dance to, and music that made you think. The slick presentation of Gibney's film successfully gets that appeal across, but the method feels compromised.

September 4, 2014 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…

Henry Barnes
Guardian
Long and undisciplined.

September 4, 2014 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…

David Jenkins
Little White Lies
Despite Fela's lively subject matter, Gibney ultimately fails to offer any lasting form of personal perspective on the issues that surround it - gimmicks notwithstanding.

June 11, 2019 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

Cameron Ward
One Room With A View
It's not Gibney firing on all cylinders, but he still hits on some vital, enduring truths.

April 3, 2019 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

Craig Williams
CineVue
Ultimately, Finding Fela loses its narrative backbone when it can no longer rely on gifted footage and must focus on the actual man.

September 6, 2018 | Full Review…

Steve Erickson
Nashville Scene
You have to learn to love his music, but once you do, it will take you to the deepest places of your soul. This film, which is built around the production of the musical, is for those who want to learn how to love Kuti.

September 6, 2018 | Full Review…

Charles Mudede
The Stranger (Seattle, WA)
No doubt others will try again but, for now, we'll have to make do with Gibney's portrayal of the man via archive footage and interviews with various talking heads.

April 26, 2017 | Full Review…

Jim Carroll
Irish Times
[Gibney] raises a pertinent question: is it contradictory to beatify an avowed anti-capitalist revolutionary with an elaborately produced show?

March 27, 2017 | Rating: Recommended | Full Review…

James Hennessy
4:3