MOVIE: "The African Doctor"

It has been a while since the last time I blogged, but I just watched this 2016 movie on Netflix and thought it deserved a post. This film simply touched me, perhaps because I identified myself with Seyolo Zantoko, the main character. Seyolo, originally from Congo, just finished medical school in France and despite having the opportunity to work as the personal doctor of the Congolese president, he’s convinced that he and his family deserve a life away from corruption, violence, and injustice. His dream is to stay in France and become a French citizen. So instead of heading back home, he takes a job no French doctor wanted to take. He becomes the doctor of Marly-Gomont, a tiny rural town in northern France.

Seyolo’s family and friends didn’t understand how he could turn down what it seemed to be the chance of a lifetime. Prestigious job back home, excellent salary, big house, fancy car, etc, etc… But for Seyolo it was more important to offer his wife and kids a better life.

Seyolo’s journey wasn’t easy though. The movie, based on a true story, takes place in the rural France of 1975, where locals have never seen a person of color before. This brought enormous challenges to the Zantoko family. People in Marly-Gormont took every chance they had to make them feel they didn’t belong. Seyolo’s struggle was real. His license to practice medicine was revoked and his wife left. He started running away from his roots. He even ends up in prison! And despite it all, he persisted.

This movie -with a perfect mix of comedy and drama- reminds us the importance of love, family, and perseverance. And it highlights the valuable contributions immigrants can make by stepping up for their communities when no one else would.