Mapantsula (1988)

Directed by

Oliver Schmitz

Genre

drama film

Country

South Africa, United Kingdom

Runtime

1h 44m

Rated

15

Rating

7.1 of 10 from 7 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A small-time thief in apartheid-era Johannesburg is caught between his own selfish hustle and the brutal reality of racial oppression. The film uses flashbacks to show his arrest and police interrogation alongside his life in Soweto.

tenseharshpolitically chargedgrittygroundedunflinchingsomber

What happens

Mapantsula is a 1988 South African crime film directed by Oliver Schmitz and written by Schmitz and Thomas Mogotlane. It tells the story of Johannes 'Panic' Themba Mzolo (Mogotlane), a small-time thief, set against the backdrop of Apartheid. The film's use of flashbacks between Panic's time at the hands of his apartheid jailor 'Stander' (Marcel Van Heerden) and happenings in the Johannesburg township of Soweto display the injustices black South Africans suffered during apartheid and their struggle for suffrage. The film makes extensive use of political rallies, police brutality, and racial difference to example the effects of apartheid on black South Africans. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival. The film was selected as the South African entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 62nd Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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