Angelo

Angelo is a film produced in 2018 by Markus Schleinzer. It tells the story of the historical figure, Angelo, who is brought to Europe in the 18th century and becomes “Europeanised”. The boy is taken from his homeland, purchased by an Austrian countess, and given the name Angelo at his baptism. Through the course of the film, Angelo goes from being treated as an object and property of his countess to becoming a subject and somewhat equal to the white society he lives in, to yet becoming an object again in a museum. The film criticizes how Angelo transitions from a savage African to a civilized man in Europe through role-play and conformity. Additionally, it demonstrates the challenges the black community faced in Europe in regards to integrating into European society. Throughout the course of this analysis, various scenes will be presented to demonstrate the story of Angelo Soliman’s journey of European integration and the societal challenges he faced.

In one of the first scenes, a group of young African boys, including one that is later revealed to be Angelo, are lined up for presentation before a countess of the Habsburg monarchy . She paces back and forth in black attire, mourning the loss of the young boy she had previously chosen. This scene demonstrates a lot about how people of African descent were viewed during this time period in Europe. The lady views herself as a rescuer and someone who is providing the boys with the opportunity for a better life. However, the boys are arranged in such a fashion and for display that it is obvious that they are being sold as if they are not human beings, but property. 

During Angelo’s first flute performance, Markus Schleinzer makes obvious to the audience how Africa was viewed by the Europeans. Before his first debut, the countess gives a speech to the few spectators that sit before them. In her monologue, she makes a distinction between wise Europeans and the savage Africans who are “more like apes than men” and are born slaves. They are “godless creatures” given to the devil at birth and incapable of reasoning or creating. After her speech, Angelo performs a simple melody on the flute and his audience applauds him. This scene demonstrates the view Europeans had of African people, and how they are placed on a pedestal, comparable to uncivilized animals. Angelo’s ability to learn the flute exhibits his capability to become civilized and join European society. Furthermore, it works as evidence for the countess’s experiment that everyone, regardless of however savage their homeland is, can learn and become civilized.

As he grows older, Angelo is seen at a social gathering interacting with other Europeans playing games and drinking. A caucasian waiter even brings Angelo refills as he plays cards at the table. However, Angelo is soon pulled aside and brought into a room with another African man who although is not as well dressed as him, was said to be sent by the prince so Angelo can interact with people of his kind, those that he is presumed to be more familiar with. When he enters the room, it is obvious Angelo is disappointed to still be compared to the other man, regardless of where he came from since his dress shows that they are not of the same class. The other man bows to Angelo and they sit in the room in silence together. Although Angelo is seen as somewhat equal to the European caucasian society, there are still moments throughout the film that show the push back to full acceptance. Schleinzer uses this interaction to reiterate that even though Angelo intermingles with the upper class Europeans, his African background still prevents him from becoming one of them.

Schleinzer contrasts the need for acceptance and conformity in Angelo’s new society through his “freeing of the birds rebellion" which demonstrates his underlying want for freedom. While young Angelo is staying with the Habsburg countess, he releases a cage of exotic birds during the night. In the morning, a housekeeper finds the birds flying around the room and the countess becomes infuriated at their escape. While the birds are trapped in another room in a small cage, Angelo is trapped in a different room and subjected to new rules that represent his “cage”. As the scene progresses, Angelo is later punished with blows from the cane. He soon learns to follow the rules in order to avoid pain and punishment. The two forces of Angelo wanting to pursue his own freedom and identity contrasted with the pressures to adapt and conform to his European culture is an idea that is repeated throughout the movie. In a scene further in the film, Angelo yet again demonstrates his need for freedom. He begins to form new relationships and a life outside of obeying the Austrian lord that oversees him. He now lives outside of the estate and is discovered to be married to a caucasian woman. His actions are perceived as a disgrace to the lord and he discharges Angelo from his duties, ultimately giving him freedom but also banishing him from their privileged society. Is his new found freedom a punishment or a gift? It allows Angelo to pursue his own life and identity, but removes him from associating with the upper class. This scene becomes a major turning point in the film as Angelo now must discover his European identity alone. 

The second half of the movie emphasizes Angelo’s freedom from the family that raised him as a household servant. Now, Angelo must fight against the foreignness that surrounds his skin in a country that views him as less than human. The first scene in the latter half of the film is the party for Angelo being granted his freedom. In this scene, Angelo’s freedom is celebrated. Markus Schleinzer emphasized in this scene one phrase, which in English translates to “You are free”. The importance of this scene is understated. The contrast of this phrase being used by the same individuals that enslaved him for his entire life is important in that it shows their blindness to the whole situation. What is meant by blindness is that these individuals took Angelo from his homeland and brought him to Austria as more or less a prop for their home, always to be viewed as lesser than human. Now that they are allowing him to be freed, they try to play his freedom off as though they never did anything wrong. It is as if they never felt as though their capturing of Angelo was wrong in the first place. Another interesting aspect of this scene is that the use of “you are free” foreshadows his future in life and begs the question, is Angelo truly free? Not only does this phrase foreshadow the future of the film, but it also symbolizes something for Angelo. Earlier in the film, Angelo stated that he would not return to Africa if he was granted his freedom, because he doesn’t feel at home in Africa. Unfortunately for Angelo, he is not allowed to feel at home in Austria either, always being viewed as an outsider. Emphasizing this shows that Angelo doesn’t truly have a home anywhere he goes and is stuck in a sort of limbo.

Angelo’s differences become more emphasized in the scene where he becomes a freemason. It is clear in this scene that he is the only black man that has ever been granted access to become a freemason. Becoming a freemason for Angelo is very prestigious and should in normal terms mark a sense of security. The head freemason, leading the ceremony for Angelo, states “all these épées (sword) you see pointed at you, are ready to defend and protect you”. This quote is important in the grand scheme of Angelo’s life, because no one comes to Angelo’s defense later in the film while he is being skinned and made into a puppet for display. In this sense we understand that Angelo was never truly one of the freemasons as their group should have defended him and his family in life and death, which they did not. One could argue that Angelo was allowed into freemasonry based on the prestige of his upbringing but held back from becoming a true member because of the color of his skin.

In this same scene where Angelo becomes a freemason, we see Angelo’s daughter standing with his wife. The image of Angelo’s daughter contrasts with the beginning of the film in which Angelo was being selected. Each scene depicts the respective child at a similar age. It is possible that this is sheer coincidence, and that Markus Schleinzer didn’t intend for this contrast at all, but it symbolizes the struggles that she will face in her life. Even though she is mixed, she will still have to endure similar experiences to those of her father. While she will not be a puppet, used for others entertainment, she will experience the embedded racism of the country and the world. She will also have to come to terms with the racism that her father’s body will endure after his death. 

In the third part of the film, Angelo and his daughter are brought to the museum in which Angelo will later, unbeknownst to him, become an exhibit. When they arrive at the Africa exhibit, the man leading them on their tour states “I’m sure it is familiar to you” while referring to Angelo. Angelo’s daughter sees the Africa exhibit and while astounded at its beauty asks Angelo “Is it like this, Papa?” to which he cannot answer. The contrast of these two quotes from this scene detail not only the blindness of the individuals that took Angelo, but also the loss that was taken from Angelo the second he was taken from Africa. The emotion that Angelo’s daughter feels when seeing this exhibit is incredible and due to his upbringing, he cannot tell his daughter if the portrayal of Africa is true or not. The statement that their tour guide says to Angelo displays the ideologies of that time perfectly. Angelo cannot answer the simplest of questions from his daughter because of the white man. Despite this, Angelo is still the perfect candidate in the white man’s eyes to portray the “typical” African man.

The end of the film brings all the pieces of the film together and makes clear where Angelo truly stood in the eyes of the Austrians of this time. After Angelo’s death he is skinned and used in the African exhibit of the museum to show what a “typical” African man looks like and what he wears. The reaction that Angelo’s daughter gives in seeing him in such an exhibit explains everything that the viewer needs to understand about the meaning. Angelo was brought up as a servant in a country unfamiliar to him, he was raised in Austria and lived there until his death and yet he is the man that was chosen to represent the African people. The meaning behind such an exhibit cannot be understated. The individuals that visit such a museum must take the portrayals that they see there as fact, because they have no other basis with which to paint a more accurate portrayal. This exhibit was not only a dangerous portrayal of the African people but also a sheer misrepresentation of Angelo’s life. This exhibit answers the question posed at the beginning of “is Angelo truly free?”. We can understand that Angelo’s supposed “freedom” was only a short-term endeavor. In the film, Angelo goes from being a slave of the Austrian civilization to supposed freedom to once again being enslaved. The only difference between the confinement of his childhood and his post-mortal confinement is that he is truly confined to a mere box.

Lastly, we cannot discuss Angelo without discussing the final scene of the film. The last scene of the film fits very well into our idea of an archive in that Angelo’s story is lost in the fire along with his body, or so we thought. The movie ends with Angelo’s body being placed into an attic, never to be seen again. The museum eventually catches fire, and the body burns to the ground with it. This scene has immense symbolic power, and multiple ways that people could interpret it. One way would be that Angelo and the racist exhibit that he has been placed in, is finally being discarded. This could symbolize the changing ideologies of Austria and that such an exhibit can no longer work. That would be a very positive idea regarding such a scene. Austria is trying to wash away a racist past with a symbolic fire. The other way that this scene could be interpreted is that it symbolized Angelo’s story being lost. In this sense, no one would ever learn the true story of Angelo Soliman, and only know the story of Angelo that was portrayed in this museum. Luckily, we know a clearer story of Angelo’s life and that his life story did not burn with the exhibit and the museum.

In conclusion, Markus Schleinzer does a great job of depicting the atrocious situation in which Angelo was brought up while also giving him and his life a voice that wasn’t much known prior to this film. Angelo allows for an archive to be built, one that otherwise wouldn’t be possible, and in terms of our project of archiving the stories and lives of marginalized groups in Austrian history, Angelo fits perfectly into that mold. Markus Schleinzer, the director of Angelo, was gracious enough to meet with us. Mr. Schleinzer was born in Vienna, Austria and resides there to this day. In speaking with him, he wanted to emphasize the story of Angelo Soliman out of fascination with his story. In doing so, giving Angelo’s story a voice that otherwise would have been lost.

Ella Marks & Ethan Walsh