Before he became the 44th President of the United States, and in fact before he had settled on running, then-Senator Barack Obama took a trip to Africa in 2006. He visited the prison in South Africa that once held Nelson Mandela and a refugee camp in Darfur; however, most important to him personally was a return to his father's hometown of Kisumu, in Kenya. Just two years in the Senate, and over the course of about an hour, here you see his first big step into the realm of international relations and diplomacy. In one of the most revealing looks you could get at Obama the new leader of the free world, you observe some interesting things, especially now that the election is behind us.

In this, the only documentary project brought to completion following Barack Obama that isn't some sort of campaign ad, you see his intellectual manner of speech lose some people during a speaking engagement. This "highfallutin' talking", which Republicans derided him for on the campaign trail is academic for sure, but for the first time in a while, you get to hear him talk about policy in something other than a soundbite or a speech that's more of a sermon. Even if a couple people found their attention spans stretched, he pulls it together at the end and he gets a resounding ovation.

Whether you like him or hate him, the relatively-short 52-minute runtime is time well spent getting a less packaged look at Obama. First Run Features is a lesser-known DVD distrib to most people, and this is probably the first you've heard of them. They put out One Bright Shining Moment: The Forgotten Summer of George McGovern, which Jeff covered here and DiscLand reviewed here. In fact, the two might make a good double feature.

If you've bought shirts, buttons, stickers, posters, collectible coins, or any of the other HopeSwag throughout the campaign, this is a no-brainer. You can buy Senator Obama Goes to Africa here.
-Moises Chiullan