Bergman-esque in its intensity, the South African film Inxeba – The Wound – has rightly won praise and awards around the world, along with the usual quota, for a film that speaks openly, and painfully, about homosexuality, masculinity, homophobia and ‘traditional culture’ in an African community, of threats and vitriol. In Cape Town, supposedly a bastion of the arts and enlightenment, the film was withdrawn by distributors Ster Kinekor, in an act of cowardice and betrayal.
All of which is to say, there is a moral imperative to see it, and a duty to support the actors and director. But over and above all this – the politics and cultural warfare – it is the film as a work of art, as a flawless exercise in controlled and yet passionate direction, acting by Nakane Toure, Bongile Mantsai and Niza Jay that is utterly invisible, and a story that transcends both its South African setting and its ‘gay’ narrative, that demands attention.
Inxeba represents the coming to maturity of South African cinema.
Director: John Trengrove
Verdict: Like the initiation into manhood which carries the narrative, Inxeba is painful to watch but a necessary rite of passage.
Five tipples. A half-jack of brandy is probably the most appropriate, with a quart of Castle to follow.
“Five tipples. A half-jack of brandy is probably the most appropriate, with a quart of Castle to follow”
Translation, please?
A half jack is half-bottle of brandy; Castle is the South African Budweiser, only drinkable.
BTW, thanks for the heads up. Although the chance of it coming to a movie house near me is close to zero, it may show up on the schedule of one of several specialty movie channels. If it appears, I will make a point of watching it.
Do, if you can. It’s challenging, but rewarding.