SOUNDTRACK TO A COUP D’ETAT (en)- Musical Écran #10

This film delves into the details surrounding Congo’s independence in June 1960 and the privatization of uranium resources in Haut-Katanga, which was finalized three days prior, in the midst of the Cold War. It also explores the events leading to the assassination of President Lumumba. During this period, the CIA saw an opportunity to act, sending Louis Armstrong to distract public attention from these political machinations. Because Duke Ellington, Miles Davis, Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, and John Coltrane symbolized so much culturally, the filmmaker gives them a prominent place in this context: “I found it interesting to imagine a film where political speeches became the lyrics of a jazz composition […]. Politics divides to conquer, while music brings people together […].“