'Catch a Fire' is a well acted film about South Africa. Set during the turbulent 1980s the film is rather macabre. That term applies to both its content and context.
The dominant theme is Apartheid. Specifically, the film focuses on the black peoples' struggle against the ruling segregationist white regime. That usually is the case with most of these films.
As I expected, the story unfolds in a township. Straight away, the plot is told mainly from the oppressed native peoples' perspective. In this instance, that perspective belongs to the ANC or African National Congress. Famous former prisoner, Nelson Mandela, was one of the group's founding members.
When we do hear from the supposed oppressor or Boers' point of view, it comes in fleeting glimpses or as banal catch phrases. And usually all we see or hear from the 'whites' is always in the negative.
The South African Boer or European colonizer can't catch a break anywhere in the film. That's because Hollywood and much of the world treat the colonizer farmers with contempt. And during these tumultuous modern times that contempt approaches or exceeds the degree once reserved for the 20th century's archetypal ruthless killer villains or Nazis.
The film's hero, Patrick Chamusso, is based on the same real life ANC freedom fighter. Derek Luke, an American actor gives a good impression of the man.
Chamusso's main antagonist is Nik Vos. He's a Boer and the head of the state's anti-terrorist branch. His character is portrayed by another American, Tim Robbins. Robbins gives a convincing if not chilling performance. His accent is nothing less than all southern hemisphere Boer.
Now I'll get back to Chamusso...
The film makes a case that he started out as an innocent peace loving family man. Patrick, who also is employed as a foreman at the state's oil refinery, Secunda, lived a model life even for a black man. Ostensibly the film suggests that Patrick was as far removed from politics and the ANC's armed struggle as Pepsi is from being a drink option on McDonald's drive through menu.
Chamusso's presumed innocence and neutrality soon change. A recent terrorist attack on the oil facility saw to that. Always diligent, Inspector Vos sniffs Chamusso's scent at the scene. Not satisfied with Patrick's alibi that he coached football that day, the zealot (terrorizing) Boer soon arrests him. To persuade Patrick to confess to the crime, Vos even resorts to torture.
And that gruesome treatment is not exclusive for Chamusso. Soon after, he arrests Patrick's wife. When the couple meet later in detention, she reveals her broken jaw, courtesy of Vos' interrogation methods.
Fast forward...
That is the last straw. Now Chamusso's former peace loving resolve is replaced by his rancor. In mere minutes he hikes to Mocambique. On his arrival in Maputo, the capital, Patrick joins his few happy but totally banned freedom fighting ANC brothers and sisters.
Minutes later we see Patrick dancing smartly to the beat of 'Kill the Boer'. He even finds solace in the steely form of either an AK-47 rifle, a bazooka or in Russian made Limpet mines.
At the terrorist training camp he meets Joe Slovo. The banned and exiled (still) leader of the South African Communist party then befriends Chamusso. Big Joe even gives him a nickname. Patrick is now 'Hot Stuff'!
Start to finish, Aussie director Noyce's overarching message is to romanticize the terrorist ANC. He desires so much to legitimize the ANC's armed struggle as just. Probably with much of their audience, the Hollywood freedom loving liberal producers/directors succeeded. However that tact did not gain my sympathy. The total bias of the film's backers was clear to me. In my opinion, they are guilty of overreaching in their rush to judgment against the Boers in general.
For starters, they neglected to mention that 'Father' Mandela as the real life Patrick Chamusso affectionately refers to him never renounced terror against the South African state or its peoples. In fact violence was the ANC's preferred method to enact political change in South Africa. And it still is, even now.
To be fair, prisoner Nelson Mandela iterated that while incarcerated he could not guarantee the ANC at large would renounce violence against the state and its citizens. Fair enough...
Had the film's brain trust provided even a snippet of context such as mentioning the Boer regime's well founded fear the ANC was equally a Marxist Leninist political party as it was an African Native Army, well, I could have easily upped the star count.
As it was, three is as liberal as I get.
The dominant theme is Apartheid. Specifically, the film focuses on the black peoples' struggle against the ruling segregationist white regime. That usually is the case with most of these films.
As I expected, the story unfolds in a township. Straight away, the plot is told mainly from the oppressed native peoples' perspective. In this instance, that perspective belongs to the ANC or African National Congress. Famous former prisoner, Nelson Mandela, was one of the group's founding members.
When we do hear from the supposed oppressor or Boers' point of view, it comes in fleeting glimpses or as banal catch phrases. And usually all we see or hear from the 'whites' is always in the negative.
The South African Boer or European colonizer can't catch a break anywhere in the film. That's because Hollywood and much of the world treat the colonizer farmers with contempt. And during these tumultuous modern times that contempt approaches or exceeds the degree once reserved for the 20th century's archetypal ruthless killer villains or Nazis.
The film's hero, Patrick Chamusso, is based on the same real life ANC freedom fighter. Derek Luke, an American actor gives a good impression of the man.
Chamusso's main antagonist is Nik Vos. He's a Boer and the head of the state's anti-terrorist branch. His character is portrayed by another American, Tim Robbins. Robbins gives a convincing if not chilling performance. His accent is nothing less than all southern hemisphere Boer.
Now I'll get back to Chamusso...
The film makes a case that he started out as an innocent peace loving family man. Patrick, who also is employed as a foreman at the state's oil refinery, Secunda, lived a model life even for a black man. Ostensibly the film suggests that Patrick was as far removed from politics and the ANC's armed struggle as Pepsi is from being a drink option on McDonald's drive through menu.
Chamusso's presumed innocence and neutrality soon change. A recent terrorist attack on the oil facility saw to that. Always diligent, Inspector Vos sniffs Chamusso's scent at the scene. Not satisfied with Patrick's alibi that he coached football that day, the zealot (terrorizing) Boer soon arrests him. To persuade Patrick to confess to the crime, Vos even resorts to torture.
And that gruesome treatment is not exclusive for Chamusso. Soon after, he arrests Patrick's wife. When the couple meet later in detention, she reveals her broken jaw, courtesy of Vos' interrogation methods.
Fast forward...
That is the last straw. Now Chamusso's former peace loving resolve is replaced by his rancor. In mere minutes he hikes to Mocambique. On his arrival in Maputo, the capital, Patrick joins his few happy but totally banned freedom fighting ANC brothers and sisters.
Minutes later we see Patrick dancing smartly to the beat of 'Kill the Boer'. He even finds solace in the steely form of either an AK-47 rifle, a bazooka or in Russian made Limpet mines.
At the terrorist training camp he meets Joe Slovo. The banned and exiled (still) leader of the South African Communist party then befriends Chamusso. Big Joe even gives him a nickname. Patrick is now 'Hot Stuff'!
Start to finish, Aussie director Noyce's overarching message is to romanticize the terrorist ANC. He desires so much to legitimize the ANC's armed struggle as just. Probably with much of their audience, the Hollywood freedom loving liberal producers/directors succeeded. However that tact did not gain my sympathy. The total bias of the film's backers was clear to me. In my opinion, they are guilty of overreaching in their rush to judgment against the Boers in general.
For starters, they neglected to mention that 'Father' Mandela as the real life Patrick Chamusso affectionately refers to him never renounced terror against the South African state or its peoples. In fact violence was the ANC's preferred method to enact political change in South Africa. And it still is, even now.
To be fair, prisoner Nelson Mandela iterated that while incarcerated he could not guarantee the ANC at large would renounce violence against the state and its citizens. Fair enough...
Had the film's brain trust provided even a snippet of context such as mentioning the Boer regime's well founded fear the ANC was equally a Marxist Leninist political party as it was an African Native Army, well, I could have easily upped the star count.
As it was, three is as liberal as I get.