Tsotsi: Baby on Board

South Africa. You can have it!

The setting of Tsotsi is so grim that the story gets lost within it.

Looking at that mess that is the extreme poverty of South Africa, one can only say, “Sure, Tsotsi finds his heart, not unlike the Grinch, after he ends up with this baby. And he does change. But damn, that South Africa is a mess. Someone do something!”

I must admit, I have felt somewhat answer-free lately when it comes to the big questions in life: Why are we here? Why is there suffering? Why don’t I look better in shirts with collars? And having no answers does lead to a certain level of discomfort. (Religion really is the opium of the masses. Pass me the works!)

So, this movie, in its full glory, was just so tough on my particular system. Random pain meted out by a thoughtless universe? Yikes on that shite!

However, the acting is nuts-amazing. And there are about three moments of pure kindness in the movie that make you cry. And seeing that Africa, in any movie at all, is always interesting.

Athol Fugard is quite a sturdy writer. And these savages do grow into nobility.
Not for the squeamish.