Macadam Tribu

Centred on two brothers - one a womanising wastrel, the other an upcoming boxer - and their anxieties about their mother, heavily into the booze since her husband abandoned her, this funny, racy, pacy and poignant debut feature (from a Zairean-born writer/director now based in Europe) is full of vitality, in terms of both performances and cinematic style. It's an unpretentious but dazzling, deceptively loose-structured portrait of a community (the setting is non-specific 'urban Africa') obsessed with sex, money and social standing. It treats adultery, neighbourly rivalries and political posturing with an admirably light touch while offering serious food for thought on such issues as unemployment and the erosion of local communities.