This Is Not a Burial, It's a Resurrection

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2:04

This Is Not a Burial, It's a Resurrection

2019

2h 0m

Drama

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Popcornmeter

100%

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38 Reviews

92%

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

An 80-year-old widow stands up to local officials who want to build a dam and resettle her village.

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Critics Consensus

This Is Not a Burial, It's a Resurrection stands in the fault line between the cradle of tradition and tomorrow, defiantly insisting that one need not exist at the expense of the other.

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Wael Khairy

RogerEbert.com

Sep 23, 2022

...nothing short of miraculous. In fact, “This Is Not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection” is as unforgettable as any film I’ve ever seen.

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Adam Nayman

The Ringer

Jul 19, 2021

By the end, Twala's presence-and her grievance-feel genuinely monumental.

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Radheyan Simonpillai

NOW Toronto

Jun 4, 2021

4/5

Between the textures of Twala's aged but defiant face and the deep, contemplative landscapes behind her, I doubt you'll see more beautiful and awe-inspiring images this year.

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Marya E. Gates

Cool People Have Feelings, Too. (Substack)

Feb 12, 2024

What is progress if it forsakes everything that came before it?

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Filipe Freitas

Always Good Movies

May 24, 2022

4.5/5

A lucid and rare survival cry.

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Ellie Lucas

From the Front Row

Dec 29, 2021

4/4

A work of great and terrible beauty, with a keen sense of time and place and timeless sense of justice.

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Dolapo O

@RT05120567 Aug 22, 2025

Mary Twala provides a hauntingly beautiful performance in this movie that challenges the stereotypes of most African films that paint the rural areas as places of peace and calm by exposing what really goes on in the homelands far away from the evil influences of the "city". They have their own form of corruption and struggles, Mary Twala beautifully portrays the experience of a southern African grandmother who tries to hold on to her way of life when everything else around her seems set on burning and erasing any living memory of it. An Oscar worthy performance.

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brad n

@RT37786826 Jul 30, 2023

Sublime, heartbreaking, life!

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Jun 20, 2022

Beautiful, sentimental, and rich with cultural traditions and storytelling. This film belongs in a museum.

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Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese

Director

Mary Twala

Mantoa

Jerry Mofokeng

Lesiba Player

Makhaola Ndebele

Priest

Tseko Monaheng

Chief Khotso

Siphiwe Nzima-Ntskhe

Pono

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This Is Not a Burial, It's a Resurrection: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

An 80-year-old widow stands up to local officials who want to build a dam and resettle her village.

Director: Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese
Producer: Cait Pansegrouw, Elias Ribeiro
Screenwriter: Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese
Production Co: Torino Film Lab, Creative Europe Media, Urucu Media, Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali, Biennale College - Cinema, Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Southern Sotho
Runtime: 2h 0m

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