tom’s film blog

Tsotsi, which is set in South Africa, is a film about a young boy, David, who runs away from home as his mother is dying. The film flashes forward many years to when David is a young adult, now called Tsotsi, leading a small gang consisting of  friends Butcher, Aap and Boston.

After beating up Boston in an argument, Tsotsi shoots a woman and steals her car, only to find a baby in the back seat. He decides to take the baby back to his home. The film then follows Tsotsi trying to deal with the crimes he’s committed and fix the problems he’s made. Tsotsi deals with youth crime, poverty, the effectiveness of the police and redemption.

It took me a little while to get into Tsotsi, it wasn’t as intense as say City of God,  I could see how the maker was trying to make like City of God, but the location and the circumstances didn’t seem that shocking. But once the baby is introduced he really does steal the show, the ‘aaaarrhh’ factor takes over the film and it’s very interesting how Tsotsi deals with the baby, he comes to love the baby, becomes protective.

This film wasn’t as impressive as City of God or La Haine, but it the had feeling and had a tense, but touching finale. It think you could argue that Tsotsi was trying to be a South African City of God, it wasn’t that violent, but I think it had more heart than the other films. It dealt with redemption, how you can right your wrongs, so it in that sense it was good. Overall it was a good film, but I preferred City of God and La Haine.

Set in slums surrounding Rio de Janerio between the late 1960s and early 1980s, City of God tells the tail of various different characters involved in gangs trying to take over the City’s drug’s trade and the power that goes with it.

Rocket, the narrator and lead protagonist of the film, tells the stories of the large number of characters who are all involved in gang violence. Much like in Once Were Warriors, City of God spoils the tourist-board idyllic version of Rio de Janerio, where violence and drug-dealing go undeterred thanks in part to an under-funded and corrupt police force.

The film is very engaging, I found myself focusing extremely hard throughout, making sure I didn’t miss a thing because it has such a complex, interwoven storyline. The subtitles play a large part in hard concentration, combined with a very quick editing. Each scene has so much to it, you have to be really on the ball and in the right mood to watch the film.   

There are various underlying themes in City of God, from gang violence, drug abuse and selling, the power and money drugs bring, as well as the corruption. One of the shocking aspects of the film are the young boys who get involved in the gangs, wielding guns and creating chaos from such a young age.

I felt the narration really helped hold the film together, without that I would have been lost. The narrative was very confusing, it felt like a triumph getting through the film, seeing the end result – it wasn’t ever the fact that I was completely lost, because the stories of the individuals were very compelling and engaging.

Out of the three films I have watched so far, City of God has been the most compelling because the way it was edited really drew me in. The film like the other three, was very shocking in parts, but I think that was needed, it didn’t shy away from violence and the end result shows that. Overall a captivating and challenging film.

La Haine follows three young friends, Vinz, Saïd and Hubert in Paris who all live in a very poor and violent housing estate. There is much unrest in the local area with constant clashes between young locals and French police. The plot of the film is set around the three protagonist’s reaction to one of their friends being hospitalised at the hands of a police officer. 

Filmed completely in black and white with subtitles I thought I’d struggle watching this film, but La Haine really draws you in. The three characters represent the unrest and misunderstanding of youth, all of whom are from ethnic minorities.

The three actors really do a good job of playing Vinz, Saïd and Hubert, they mix raw emotion with subtle humour, I felt for them, especially at the climax of the film.

The film has a very realistic feel to it, this is partly down to it being shot in black and white, but also how realistic the acting is. This helped me enjoy the film, I enjoyed this more than Once Were Warriors. Rven though it had subtitles and after a while I started to forget there after a while it was subtitled.

The film flowed well but it did take a little while to get into because I didn’t really feel the film was getting anywhere, but everything fitted together nicely, the clock added tension to the film and the finale is very good, it draws you one way and then you’re hit with an unexpected finish.

Once Were Warriors is a a grim depiction of life in New Zealand. It is a complete contrast to the stereotpyical view of New Zealand, unihabited, beautiful landscapes, this shows the darker side of the country. 

Beth lives with her abusive husband Jake and five children, in their small run down home. Domestic violence is set to the backdrop of a bleak, depressing town, where large parts of the population are trapped in poverty and neglect.

The oldest daughter of the family, Grace, dreams of leaving the town she has grown up in, she writes stories to escape the life she lives in.

The feel of the film is very grim, some parts are very shocking. The story deals with various issues like how different parts of society can clash and the divide between the old and new, as well as domestic violence and rape.

I found the setting of New Zealand interesting because it’s a place known for its beauty but this shows another side, a darker, grittier side. This wouldn’t have been something I would have watched normally. It was a challenge to watch in parts, but once I got over that and the film concluded I appreciated it for what it was, a very moving and thought provoking film.

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