Delta Boys (2012) – movie review
January 9th, 2013 by Mr. C
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Director: Andrew Berends
Genre: Documentary on the Niger Delta Militants in the oil-rich region of Nigeria.
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Militants, rebels, freedom fighters, Delta Boys, or Sea Pirates? These are labels that are used to describe the Niger Delta rebellious group of 2000+ who have banded together in the face of corrupt government oppression in the oil rich region of Southern Nigeria. Nigeria is the 5th largest supplier of oil to the U.S. and they produce hundreds of millions of dollars in oil & gas. Nigeria is also the 8th largest exporter of oil on the planet. The question is where is all the revenue from the sale of these resources going to? None of it is certainly going back to the people that are being affected by the environmental hazards. The inhabitants of this region still live in poverty. The average person lives on less than a $1 a day here. There are no good schools, jobs, hospitals, or roads. There is no clean water to drink and the constant flaring of natural gas pollutes the ecosystem. And to add insult to injury, the Niger Delta region also has over 300 oil spills every year thanks to the help of Mr. Shell & Mr. Mobil. Could it possibly mean that the oil companies and the local government are reaping tremendous profits from this business venture while leaving its citizens high & dry?
The director, cinematographer, & basically one man band – Andrew Berends does a noble job with unearthing the story of these freedom fighters – the Delta Boys lead by Tom Ateka affectionately addressed by his followers as godfather. It would seem to be of dangerous proportions to put yourself in harms way to film these rebel forces, these militants that the Nigerian Government would love to eradicate but the director did just that to tell uncover this story. He earned the trust of the Niger Delta patriotic forces in order tell the real tale of why these rebels do what they do. Yes, some of these freedom fighters might be joining the cause because of economics and still others might be in it because they have no where else to go. But the majority of the patriotic forces lead by Ateka seemed to be all in it for what belonged to them, their rights and the basic necessities for advancement in society like education, hospitals, roads, clean water and clean environment. Not to condone it, but you can see why blowing up pipe lines, sabotage flow stations, & kidnapping foreign oil representatives might be part of the equation for those desperate to seek retribution in this region.
Besides following the militants around, the director introduces us to a few personal stories from the village including Mama, a 22 year old who has complications when giving birth with no modern medical care, Chima who gets released from jail looking to reform himself, and of course the godfather of the whole freedom operation – Tom Ateke. The director’s inclusion of these characters added a broad spectrum of lives that are being affected by the greed in the Niger Delta.
Will there be a truce between the freedom fighters and the government? Are the living conditions in this oil soaked region of Nigeria going to improve? The struggle is certainly real but are the motives of some heartfelt? The film answers these questions and comes to a conclusion at the end.
“We have friends, but we have no friends.” – Delta Boys
Get ready to transport yourself into the everyday struggles and to raise awareness about the oil conflicts in the Niger Delta. Delta Boys is scheduled to be released on January 15th on Hulu, Netflix, & Snagfilms! Look out for it!
Note: Andrew Berends is a documentary filmmaker using Kickstarter to fund his project Delta Boys, a recipient of the 2008 Sundance Institute Documentary Film Grant.
Tags: delta boys, documentary
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