X
In Theaters Now
  • 2024
  • Kino Lorber
  • 2 h 30 m
  • 2024
  • Kino Lorber
  • 2 h 30 m

Summary In 1960, United Nations: the Global South ignites a political earthquake, musicians Abbey Lincoln and Max Roach crash the Security Council, Nikita Khrushchev bangs his shoe denouncing America’s color bar, while the U.S. dispatches jazz ambassador Louis Armstrong to the Congo to deflect attention from its first African post-colonial coup.

Directed By: Johan Grimonprez

Written By: Johan Grimonprez, Daan Milius

In Theaters Now
  • 2024
  • Kino Lorber
  • 2 h 30 m
  • 2024
  • Kino Lorber
  • 2 h 30 m

Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat

Metascore Universal Acclaim Based on 5 Critic Reviews
93
User Score Mixed or Average Based on 5 User Ratings
4.6
My Score
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Summary In 1960, United Nations: the Global South ignites a political earthquake, musicians Abbey Lincoln and Max Roach crash the Security Council, Nikita Khrushchev bangs his shoe denouncing America’s color bar, while the U.S. dispatches jazz ambassador Louis Armstrong to the Congo to deflect attention from its first African post-colonial coup.

Directed By: Johan Grimonprez

Written By: Johan Grimonprez, Daan Milius

Where to Watch

View Showtimes
Not available in your country?
ExpressVPN
Get 3 Extra months free
$6.67/mth

Top Cast

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View All Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
Universal Acclaim Based on 5 Critic Reviews
93
100% Positive
5 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews

Critic Reviews

 View All
Metascore
Universal Acclaim Based on 5 Critic Reviews
93
100% Positive
5 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
100
Nov 1, 2024
The film, with its dazzling musical energy, its complex narrative sweep and its dizzying cast of characters, finally emerges as a tragedy: a story of promises broken and trust betrayed, echoing into our own era with all the force and feeling of a ballad from Armstrong’s horn.
By Zachary Barnes FULL REVIEW
100
Oct 31, 2024
In making Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat, the director Johan Grimonprez used every instrument cinema affords. His documentary is rhythmic and propulsive, with reverberating sound and images juxtaposed against one another to lend more meaning. The result, in a word, is marvelous.
By Alissa Wilkinson FULL REVIEW
88
Nov 1, 2024
Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat succeeds as an intense piece of reclamation and rejuvenation, giving breath to Lumumba’s spirit by sporting the same kind of defiance the political leader espoused.
By Robert Daniels FULL REVIEW
83
Feb 9, 2024
Where the sprawling, knotty, and thoroughly captivating Soundtrack to a Coup d’État sheds new light is in its form, exploring a global conspiracy playing out often right in view.
By John Fink FULL REVIEW
83
Jan 30, 2024
Eclectic and unconventional in its presentation, Soundtrack’s density can throw you for a loop, especially if you don’t know the first thing about the geopolitics of the time and place. But it proves a healthy primer on the skeptical eye we should take towards world powers, and how even the art that’s meant to free us can be used against us.
By Clint Worthington FULL REVIEW

User Reviews

 View All
User Score
Mixed or Average Based on 5 User Ratings
4.6
60% Positive
3 Ratings
0% Mixed
0 Ratings
40% Negative
2 Ratings

User Reviews

 View All
User Score
Mixed or Average Based on 5 User Ratings
4.6
60% Positive
3 Ratings
0% Mixed
0 Ratings
40% Negative
2 Ratings

There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.

Details

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Production Company Warboys Films, Onomatopee Films, Zap-O-Matik, BALDR Film
Release Date Nov 1, 2024
Duration 2 h 30 m
Genres
Tagline We're not angry man, we are enraged. You can no longer defer my dream. I'm gonna sing it, dance it, scream it and if need be: I'll steal it from this very earth! (Archie Shepp)
Website https://kinolorber.com/film/soundtrack-to-a-coup-d-etat
View All Details

Awards

Critics' Choice Documentary Awards
• 4 Nominations
The Hague Movies that Matter Festival
• 1 Win & 3 Nominations
Sundance Film Festival
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations

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