16 Movies Set in Africa

Due to the overwhelming success of Marvels Black Panther which has made over $1.126 billion at the box office Worldwide, we can see that there is a real interest in African culture. For those who enjoyed Black Panther, I thought I'd put together a list of movies set in various parts Africa.

Recommended: Check out my review of Black Panther here

The movies on this list are set in a range of locations from Southern Africa, East Africa to North Africa. Countries Include Kenya, Sudan, Somalia, Egypt, South Africa, Rwanda, Nigeria and many more

1. Blood Diamond

As civil war rages through 1990s Sierra Leone, two men, a white South African mercenary (Leonardo DiCaprio) and a black Mende fisherman (Djimon Hounsou), become joined in a common quest to recover a rare gem that has the power to transform their lives. With the help of an American journalist (Jennifer Connelly), the men embark on a hazardous trek through rebel territory to achieve their goal.

2. Machine Gun Preacher

Sam Childers (Gerard Butler), a former biker, decides to go to East Africa to help repair homes destroyed by civil war. Transformed by the horrors he sees, Sam ignores the warnings of more experienced aide workers and breaks ground for an orphanage in the heart of territory controlled by a brutal renegade militia. But establishing a shelter is not enough; determined to save as many lives as possible, Sam leads armed missions into enemy territory to rescue kidnapped children.

3. Hotel Rwanda

Paul Rusesabagina (Don Cheadle), a Hutu, manages the Hôtel des Mille Collines and lives a happy life with his Tutsi wife (Sophie Okonedo) and their three children. But when Hutu military forces initiate a campaign of ethnic cleansing against the Tutsi minority, Paul is compelled to allow refugees to take shelter in his hotel. As the U.N. pulls out, Paul must struggle alone to protect the Tutsi refugees in the face of the escalating violence later known as the Rwandan genocide.

4. The Last King of Scotland

While in Uganda on a medical mission, Scottish doctor Nicholas Garrigan (James McAvoy) becomes the personal physician and close confidante of dictator Idi Amin (Forest Whitaker). Although at first Dr. Garrigan feels flattered by his new position of power, he soon comes to realize that Amin's rule is soaked in blood, and that he is complicit in the atrocities. Garrigan faces the fight of his life as he tries to escape Amin's grasp.

5. Tears of the Sun

The Nigerian government has fallen, and the country is on the verge of civil war. Lt. A.K. Waters (Bruce Willis) has been assigned to lead a team of soldiers into the Nigerian jungle to rescue Dr. Lena Kendricks (Monica Bellucci). When Waters and his team locate Kendricks, she tells them she won't leave her helpless patients to be slaughtered by rebels. The team incurs the wrath of both U.S. and Nigerian forces when they side with Kendricks and attempt to march the refugees to safety.

6. Tsotsi

A South African hoodlum named Tsotsi (Presley Chweneyagae) lives by a code of violence, and he and his gang of thugs prowl the streets of Johannesburg day and night, attacking those who fail to give them what they want. After casually shooting a woman and stealing her car, he discovers her baby in the back seat. Instead of harming the mewling infant, he takes it home and cares for it. The child acts as a catalyst for the hardened thug to regain his humanity.

8. District 9

Thirty years ago, aliens arrive on Earth -- not to conquer or give aid, but -- to find refuge from their dying planet. Separated from humans in a South African area called District 9, the aliens are managed by Multi-National United, which is unconcerned with the aliens' welfare but will do anything to master their advanced technology. When a company field agent (Sharlto Copley) contracts a mysterious virus that begins to alter his DNA, there is only one place he can hide: District 9.

9. Lord of War

The 20-year arms dealing career of Queens, N.Y., outcast Yuri Orlov (Nicolas Cage) serves as a window onto the end of the Cold War and the emergence of worldwide terrorism. He finds himself reassuring his more ethically challenged younger brother, Vitaly (Jared Leto), while adeptly sidestepping the pursuit of federal agent Jack Lawrence (Ethan Hawke). The globetrotting arms dealer also pursues the woman of his dreams, supermodel Ava Fontaine (Bridget Moynahan).

10. Zulu

Three South African cops (Orlando Bloom, Forest Whitaker, Conrad Kemp) investigate the drug-related murder of a young woman.

11. The Gunman

Eight years after fleeing the Congo following his assassination of that country's minister of mining, former assassin Jim Terrier (Sean Penn) is back, suffering from PTSD and digging wells to atone for his violent past. After an attempt is made on his life, Terrier flies to London to find out who wants him dead -- and why. Terrier's search leads him to a reunion with Annie (Jasmine Trinca), a woman he once loved, who is now married to an oily businessman (Javier Bardem) with dealings in Africa.

12. Captain Phillips

n April 2009, the U.S. containership Maersk Alabama sails toward its destination on a day that seems like any other. Suddenly, Somali pirates race toward the vessel, climb aboard and take everyone hostage. The captain of the ship, Richard Phillips (Tom Hanks), looks to protect his crew from the hostile invaders, and their leader, Muse (Barkhad Abdi). The pirates are after millions of dollars, and Phillips must use his wits to make sure everyone survives and returns home safely.

13. Black Hawk Down

The film takes place in 1993 when the U.S. sent special forces into Somalia to destabilize the government and bring food and humanitarian aid to the starving population. Using Black Hawk helicopters to lower the soldiers onto the ground, an unexpected attack by Somalian forces brings two of the helicopters down immediately. From there, the U.S. soldiers must struggle to regain their balance while enduring heavy gunfire.

14. The English Patient

The sweeping expanses of the Sahara are the setting for a passionate love affair in this adaptation of Michael Ondaatje's novel. A badly burned man, Laszlo de Almasy (Ralph Fiennes), is tended to by a nurse, Hana (Juliette Binoche), in an Italian monastery near the end of World War II. His past is revealed through flashbacks involving a married Englishwoman (Kristin Scott Thomas) and his work mapping the African landscape. Hana learns to heal her own scars as she helps the dying man.

15. The Bang Bang Club

Photojournalists (Ryan Phillippe, Taylor Kitsch, Frank Rautenbach) put themselves in harm's way as they shoot evidence of atrocities committed in the final days of South African apartheid.

16. Safehouse

For the past year, rookie CIA agent Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds) has been eager to prove himself while cooling his heels at an inactive South African post. He gets the chance when Tobin Frost (Denzel Washington), a turncoat operative, is brought to Weston's safe house for debriefing. But soon after Frost's arrival, mercenaries attack, and Weston and Frost barely escape with their lives. The two men must join forces and try to stay alive long enough to figure out who wants them dead.

An African Affair

Have you seen any of these movies set in Africa? If so which one was your favourite? Are there any movies set in Africa you think deserve a mention? Let me know in the comments

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