Maangamizi The Ancient One (2001)

An American woman doctor comes to Tanzania to work at a hospital for the mentally disturbed with her Tanzanian lover There she meets a sometimes catatonic patient Samahe who seems to be in communication with another reality In their confrontation with their individual and collective pasts Dr Asira and Samehe are bound by fears and half remembered images of unbearable pain Only through the spirit of Maangamizi can the women resume their lives with an understanding of the ancestors and their eternal presence in a world of cruelty hatred and death It is a story that seeks to reclaim the connection between Africa and her Diaspora and one that dares to represent the histories of two continents as it peels away layers upon layers of pain to bring healing of the soul