Olá, and welcome back to another weekly Movie and TV Review! This week’s film on the docket is Another Day of Life, which shares its title with the book it’s based on. I’m not a history buff by any stretch of the imagination, so I can’t swear to how accurate everything is — but you know the saying: history is written by the victor, and in this case, Kapuściński won.
The film itself is surprisingly entertaining (is that the word? lol), blending animated CGI sequences with live interviews from the surviving crew. Sadly, Kapuściński wasn’t around to see the film reach production. Now without further ado, let’sssss get it!

Confusão! Confusão! Everything is all mixed up!
It’s 1975, and Angola is falling apart as its former captors, the Portuguese, flee the ongoing civil war ahead of the country’s independence. Angola is split between the MPLA, backed by the socialist USSR, and the FNLA, backed by the capitalist U.S.
Enter lone Polish journalist Ryszard “Ricardo” Kapuściński, who dives headfirst into the heat of war, determined to report what’s happening on the ground and meet the legendary military mind, Farrusco.
Just days before November 11, 1975 — Angola’s Independence Day — Ricardo lands in Luanda. Rumors fly that both the Cubans and the CIA have their hands deep in the conflict, each with their own motives, though none of it has been confirmed. We also meet our first interviewee, Artur, a fellow journalist who soon joins Ricardo on his journey south to find Farrusco in Pereira d’Eça.

During the long drive, Artur warns Ricardo that life or death is a coin toss depending on who they run into. MPLA soldiers greet each other with “Camarada” — and they don’t greet first. As luck would have it, they’re greeted by enemies. But Carlota, the Angolan Sheera, comes through whooping ass and saving the day, and Ricardo and Artur eventually part ways.

Long story short, Kapuściński does make it to Pereira d’Eça — but the real gut punch is Carlota’s fate. She dies at just 20 years young, yet she’d already lived through more than many ever will. She cared deeply for the children around her, worried about their futures, dreamed of becoming a nurse, and wanted a family of her own. The film makes it clear she never got the chance.

Carlota made me reflect on my own life — the 20-plus years I’ve spent doing… well, whatever it is I’ve been doing. And honestly? I’m a little ashamed I didn’t take my early years more seriously. But I’m still hopeful. As my mother once said, “Where there’s life, there’s hope.”

The film memorializes those who fell on the path to freedom and reminds us that freedom ain’t free. Overall, I quite enjoyed it.

Anypoops, I give Another Day of Life a fresh rose.