★★★★½

Wanuri Kahiu's Rafiki is a tale of love and loss that asks how we can be happy in a society that will not accept us for who we are. Following the story of Kena (Samantha Mugatsia) and Ziki (Sheila Munyeva), the daughters of two rival politicians who fall in love, this film is both a celebration of that love but also serves as a reminder of the deep hatred that very much still permeates the world we live in (as a result of this film being banned in Kenya, where the story is set and where homosexuality is still illegal, Kahiu is taking the Kenyan government to court). But it is also a celebration of African filmmaking, following an aesthetic that Kahiu refers to as AFROBUBBLEGUM - this is ever-present in the vibrant colours and decorative patterns that flourish the screen in every scene. This is a film that is dangerously close to flying under the radar, but it is one that definitely everyone should see.