Tsotsi

Normally, I am reluctant to slam another person's comments about a film, but I have to take issue with Noel-74. First of all, the arrogance of comments like, "You've got to be a complete idiot to believe you're seeing something new" takes me back to the self-important little twerps of my undergraduate days. So, Noel-74, if you are an undergraduate, my apologies. Let's hope it's just a stage you're working through. If you're over the of 25, please stay clear. I mean, seriously, your comment that there was something sinister in making abject poverty look so beautiful. Can any person look at the scenes depicted in that movie and feel anything other than horror at the conditions in which so many of our brothers and sisters live? Not to get all touchy-feely on you, but if you came away from that movie thinking about how beautiful it all looked, I'd say it was you, and not the movie, that could use a little more introspection. I liked this movie a lot. I thought it was moving, chilling, depressing and unpredictable. Even the ending (NO SPOILERS HERE) could have gone a bunch of different ways, several of which would have been more conventional than what we are left with. A very good film, with excellent acting.

The obvious comparison for this film is City of God and unfortunately, Tsotsi falls short of it in pretty much every respect. The first shot of the main character, Tsotsi, is almost comic, such is the contrast between the sinister lighting, music and atmosphere and the face of the protagonist himself, which looks quite frankly soft. A tougher, meaner looking actor should surely have been cast for such a role; or Presley Chweneyagae, who did put in a good performance, could at least been somehow made to look a little more convincing for the part. The violence contained within the film, while moderate, is at times very fake looking and certainly not shocking as it is in City of God. This is actually a reflection of Tsotsi compared to City of God in nearly every way; it is just so much more two dimensional as a film. It seems quite amateur when juxtaposed with City of God. As a film in its own right however, it does have its merits. While it's difficult to become attached to any of the characters; they are relatively convincing. The plot is certainly passable and the soundtrack isn't at all bad, though at times not entirely appropriate. Overall, this film does do something new with its depiction of a Jo'burg slum; it's nearly touching in places and quite entertaining throughout. Just don't be taken in by the hype and expect too much. It's just averagely good. If you want to be blown away, go and watch City of God.

The male lead has an uncompromising glower, and that is the extent of his repertoire. With his gang and his glower he stalks through shanty town, striking terror into the townsfolk? Actually no, derision, they're jeering at him. Camera concentrates on his glower, what will this badass of all badasses, this gangsta's gangsta, do to reduce these sniggering jackals to a state of grovelling terror? In that time-honored gesture of defiant helplessness, he raises his middle finger to them. That's the first descent into bathos. Gang on subway, glower spots victim flashing paypacket, gang surround him, glower skewers him with skewer to heart, Train stops at station, and every other person in the compartment gets off, and no one gets on. Total improbability number 1. Gang in bar, member upbraiding glower, apparently offing folks is a new departure for the gang. Glower beats upbraider to a pulp, then flees in terror through the night and the undergrowth and the pouring rain. His rain (or tear) streaked face keeps being interspersed with that of a lookalike young boy, tear-streaked. What do we have now? A psychopath with a conscience? Total improbability and descent into bathos number 2. Glower emerges in the suburbs. Car drives up, garage door won't open, woman gets out to call her husband on intercom. Glower takes car at gun-point. Woman objects, glower blows her away. Woo-wee, we're back in psycho mode again! 30 seconds later, baby in back seat wakes up and starts crying lustily. Glower stops car, we witness his inner torment, and find ourselves on our knees before the screen, hands clasped in supplication and imploring "Please, please, just once stay in context, will you. Just pick the kid up by the scruff of the neck and toss it out the window". Not a chance; now we get total improbability and descent into bathos number 3. Glower decides that all he's ever really wanted is a 2 month old baby to love and care for. At this point, ten minutes into the movie, I tossed it. It was either that, or my cookies.

After watching this film was not surprised to read how well received this film has been on the festival circuit. The attention to the subtleties of the actors, the roaring soundtrack, and the raw and uncompromising story will leave you with thoughts on the film for days on end. With amazing footage shot in the streets the story is based on this is a true insight into the world of communities in deprived South Africa. With subtitles this film has allowed the actors (some coming from the very communities the film is based in) the story has a true authenticity which makes the story and the character in it stick with you. While the lead is a thug the film addresses areas of his past making for an intense final act.

All I can do is echo the sentiment already expressed by some of the other commenters. This is CITY OF GOD meets HAPPY DAYS. The bipolarity of the ruthless thug (one minute a ruthless killer, the next minute a Luv's diaper commercial) is completely unconvincing. You can approach it in one of two ways: (1) A gritty, realistic movie turned sappy; or (2) a sappy, ABC-afterschool-special with profanity, violence and animal cruelty. Either way it just don't fly, do it? Why then has it received so much praise? As others have implied, it gets the "conscience vote" from the west. Show us pictures of poverty to contrast against our fluffy, double-wide theatre seats and 44-oz cokes, and we'll applaud in a heartbeat. But--oh--don't forget to candy coat it, because the bitter pill of reality (tantalizing as it is) is hard for us to swallow. I'm terribly disappointed that this film would receive so many awards and accolades, especially when there are far more deserving works of film out there. All I can say is: beware of any film that receives awards (Hollywood Oscars = sweeping, syrupy tripe. Cannes Film Festival = beard-stroking, artless propaganda). To find the real gems, you'll have to work hard at it.

I watched this with my wife, who prefers heavy drama ("Dogville" is one of her favorite films). The lead character commits several particularly brutal criminal acts in the first 30 minutes, establishing that he is vicious and completely lacking in empathy. And then, though the somehow magical influence of an innocent baby winding up in his care, he somehow develops an ethical system. It is completely unbelievable. The character established in the first quarter of the film would have dumped the infant in ditch without a second thought. Possibly the filmmakers over-sold his viciousness early on, but I did not buy his redemption. I seriously considered walking out of this film, and would have if I had not been with my wife. One of the more unpleasant film-going experiences I have ever had (after the repulsive and hateful "Dogville").

Lately South Africa has produced a few really excellent movies (with a bit of oversea capital and support) - but Tsotsi really wins hands down. In profound movies, themes have to be multi-layered to give the whole film resonance and deep meaning. Here, the narrative is clear, linear, non-gimmicky and easily absorbed. Tsotsi (the character David) is a damaged human being and his actions are highly mitigated. Every liberal bone in our bodies react to his predicament and our sympathies are clearly expected and received. Many IMDb contributors have said that it recalls City of God (also a great movie) but I think the thrust of the main character reminds me more of Citizen Kane. I don't want to follow this thread for fear of spoilers. Please support this movie by going to see it; understand our problems here in SA and also be uplifted by its sheer humanity. Simply one of my all time top ten movies.

One of the best directed films to come out of South Africa. A message of hope delivered in a beautifully crafted film. Emotional… but not soppy or melodramatic. A world-class piece of film-making on the same playing field as "City of God". I've seen the film at the Edinburgh film festival where everybody was talking about it. It also ended up winning the audience award. Films like "Amelie" and "The Full Monty" also won the same award in the past. As a South African citizen myself, I could really connect to the film. The characters were very real and the main actor was amazing. It was his first role in a feature film. I heard that he was recruited from a small drama school in one of the townships. His raw talent and the great direction make this one of the best films I have seen recently.

Just back from the final screening of this movie at the Edinburgh Film Festival and it's brilliant. The film's about a township thug (Tsotsi) who shoots a woman and ends up taking care of her baby boy. The story, acting, visuals, soundtrack are great. Presley Chweneyagae who plays the title role is especially good - his violent emotionally damaged character is riveting (cant say much more without going into 'spoiler' territory!). Soweto, where the movie mainly takes place, looks & feels like the real thing. I recently visited ghettos in Soweto (which is the #1 reason I wanted to see this film) and Tsotsi captures the gritty, scary, and fun sides of these eye-opening places. Kwaito music (South African township music) is the soundtrack to large parts the film. It would be great if this movie pushed Kwaito artists like Zola onto the international music scene. The producer of the film, Peter Fudakowski, gave a wee speech at today's screening of Tsotsi saying it had won 2 UK awards but it still needs a distributor. Hopefully this wont be the case for too long as it's a cracking film that today's audience really enjoyed - when the end credits appeared the film got a round of applause from everyone!

For South Africans, both resident and in exile, this film is likely to be a harrowing experience. It shows us some of the consequences of what we allowed to be done in our name. Cinematically, the film is superb, partly because it is so understated. It is probably an insight into a way of life all to common in African metropolises. Whilst it shows the way of life in shanty towns and was, I know, filmed in authentic locations, I found myself wondering whether the coloring was just a bit rosy, but that is a very minor criticism. The director has coaxed a performance from his lead actor which is, I think, a landmark. So much of the performance is visual - he says very little. He is supported by a bevy of other characters which those familiar with South Africa will recognize all to easily. If you do not have a South African connection, see the movie as an insight into our way of life. See it because it is a story worth telling and therefore worth seeing.