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The idea for 'Agazi Operation' was born 16 years ago
when an Ethiopian Television crew that included
Berhanu Abadi, film script writer, and Solomon
Asmelash, producer, was assigned to field work in
the northern part of Ethiopia that covers parts of
Tigray and Amhara regional states.
Both, then, were journalists for the lone state TV
station in the country. Berhanu narrated what
happened one February morning in 1986 in Mekele
Prison and some members of the crew said the story
would make a magnificent novel, while Solomon
described it as "a wonderful cinema".
The story became a movie 16 years later, directed by
Berhanu Shiberu. and presented by Hyper Film and
Advertising, a company owned by Solomon who is also
its general manager.
Indeed, it is the first of such war movies in
Ethiopia and it is obvious that a lot of effort has
been put into its making.
'Agazi Operation' is a film about an actual
operation by the same name that took place in
February 1986 in Mekele Prison, Mekele Town of the
then Tigray Province, now Regional State. The real
life happening was led by the legendary Tigray
Liberation Front (TPLF) fighter, Hayelom Araya,
targeting the rescue of about 1300 prisoners in an
onslaught by the military junta.
The film scriptwriters, Berhanu Abadi and Haile
Ayalneh experienced the real life experience as a
prisoner and as a TPLF fighter, respectively.
"It is a great piece of work, with a clear
indication of the effort needed to put the different
parts together. But it has some structural
problems," Professor Abiy Ford said, excited at
witnessing the production of a movie of this kind in
his country.
In the movie, the two main opposing protagonists -
Colonel Mengistu Hailemariam (then President of
Ethiopia and Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces) and
the late Hayelom Araya - were superbly depicted by
Zinabu Gebreseliasie and Haile Ayalneh,
respectively, who almost have the same facial
features as those of the men they represent.
"Playing Mengistu's character was a bit difficult
because he used a lot of facial expressions and had
a uniquely fast eye movement," Zinabu told me at the
end of the premier.
He, however, boasts that he is the obvious choice to
characterize the colonel, as he believes he a
replica of the man.
It is evident that the generous military equipment
supply - from guns to tanks, choppers and fighter
jets - by the Ministry of Defense has helped 'Agazi
Operation' move some steps forward in Ethiopia's
film making history.
The film, however, did not use any archival footage,
which, apart from giving it authenticity, also
denies the movie the flavour of reality.
In addition to its amazing qualities, the movie made
between Addis Abeba and Tigray, cost 2.8 million Br,
and took one and half years and 1500 individuals to
film. The organizers claim that all actors have been
paid for their roles. The movie, however, has flaws
that could have been avoided if the directors and
producers had paid attention to detail.
For example, simple meticulousness would have
identified that the type of car plate numbers used
22 years back were much different from the current
ones. This would have saved the film from having
characters play an incident way back in 1986
cruising in cars with contemporary plates. Most of
the characters, mainly those in the prison, were
dressed, jeans and T-shirts and all, in the current
fashion.
Any moviegoer could easily see, as I did, that 'Agazi
Operation' tries to depict an event of more than two
decades ago with characters from the present time.
The faces, mostly of the TPLF fighters and the
prisoners, did not show anything close to the
suffering that one would expect them to. The Film
Director, Berhanu Shiberu, and the Makeup Director,
Paulos Regessa in particular, could have done much
better to rescue the film not only from these flaws,
but also from the absence of colour in films typical
of the 1980's.
Another flaw, which should have been identified
during the early stages of filming, perhaps during
shooting (recording) or editing, is the glaringly
unrealistic distance between the TPLF fighters
breaking into the prison and the Derg soldiers
guarding it. The footage on this particular scene
was shot with a single camera lens zoomed to expose
the two sides just a pole's length from each
other. No one can break into a prison from such
close distance to its guards without being noticed
by the latter. Any soldier worth his salt could
easily identify the sounds and movements the
fighters make.
The rest is for you to see.
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