Anglo-South African show, produced by „Tsotsi” 2005 is a prize Winner audience at festivals in Toronto, Denver and Los Angeles. It was one of the biggest events latest festival in Camerimage.The awards which this movie won, joined the most important one – Oscar for best foreign language movie.
Movie action of which scriptswas fulfilled based on the popular South African AtholaFugard, take place in Johannesburg ghetto.One of its resident is titled Tsotsi (this Word means gangster) - aggressive and closed young boy. He lives from the theft and assaults. He is killing for money. During one of the "actions" in the Tsotsi car he is finding a baby what was the climax in the film. The appearance of the child causes that his dominated living by poverty, violence and hate suddenly is gaining the sense. . "Tsotsi" tells a very simple story, predictable, especially in the end when David is giving the child back to parents, because he doesn't want this baby to experience this loneliness as he did after when he ran out from the house and his parents died of AIDS. It is hard to resist the impression that we could already see in some movies or we read in some books. The story is drawing with every minute. The whole is set in the rhythm of the kwaito.- music which connects hip hop with the ethnic music, and modern rhythm, the music of the South African street is granting the unique atmosphere in the movie and the rhythm which perfectly Mark Kilian and Hepker Paul selected.The film "Tsotsi" is repeating ancient truth that the man isn't born bad or good from, that he isn't sentenced to some fate, that is an empty page which the life is writing.
- David is a young gangster, which in spite of traumatic experiences from the childhood (death of parents from AIDS, lonely growing up), of practical road at first badly chosen, kept the sensitivity and despite everything specific morality. The first scene of the film is already showing the closed, young man which after all isn't convinced of the appropriateness of his proceedings - says Chweneyagae Presley which is playing a main role i.e. David aka Tsotsi
-All young heroes of this film are getting the chance from the fate and orthey waste it, as did it a "Butcher" (for which he paid a high price, which was the loss of life), or tries to change and be better, with every consequences - is saying ZenzoNgqobe (Butcher)
Director of the film of which prototype was novel directed by AtholaFugarda named "Tsotsi from the Southern Africa", is Gavin Hood.However "Tsotsi" is a much more ambitious project. Hood is rather a competent director in this regard, because he grew up alone in the southern Africa, whereas at the beginning of its career he was trying to make educational films about AIDS, for the Department of Health in Africa. Gavid decided that the film won't be in English (what would add to the movie an RSA climate) but in the variety coming from South America, i.e. Tsootsital which is a slang created on the base of local dialects.
"Tsotsi", in my opinion, is a film worth watching and at least at the beginning it might seem to be a thriller, this is an wrong impression. Whatever whereas concerns the main character, as the spectator, I have for him, despite everything, a lot of sympathy. It isn't possible to hate Tsotsie, because each of us can see himself in that character. Each of us, one time, stood on the crossroads of the life, everyone of us stood up before choices, perhaps not so dramatic, as the main character, but also as important. Tsotsi have made good choice and wasn't afraid of consequence, what about us? After leaving the cinema there are unanswered questions left...
Presley ChweneyagaeTsotsi
Terry Pheto Miriam
Kenneth NkosiAap
MothusiMagano Boston
ZenzoNgqobeButcher
Zola Fela
RapulanaSeiphemo John Dube
NambithaMpumlwanaPumlaDube
NonthuthuSibisi The Baby
NtuthukoSibisi The Baby
Jerry Mofokeng Morris
Ian Roberts Captain Smit
Percy Matsemela Sergeant Zuma
ThembiNyandeniSoekie
Owen SejakeGumbootDlamini
Israel MakoeTsotsi's Father
SindiKhambuleTsotsi's Mother
Benny Moshe Young Tsotsi
BhekiVilakazi Newspaper Vendor
Craig Palm Young Cop
Jeremiah Ndlovu Old Man at the Tap
Lennox Mathabathe Policeman