As
cliché as this will undoubtedly sound, there’s one word with which to describe
this film - MAGICAL. The
alluring title “Thina Sobabili” loosely translated as “Just the two of us” generated
just the right amount of anticipation to watch the film. I have viewed a number
of films in my life and as soon as I’m out of the cinema, I would have utterly
forgotten about the film. However this film is entirely the opposite because
it’s mesmeric all the way through.
Not
a hard-core film but definitely makes you feel uncomfortable and gloomy for the
people in the situation. It brings you face to face with the extreme social
ills and the realities of social issues. It unquestionably takes you out of the
comfort zone and compels you to empathise with the characters.
Set
in Alexandra Township, east of Johannesburg, directed by Ernest Nkosi, Thina
Sobabili tells a story of two young siblings, Zanele and her older brother
Thulas. They are desperate, living on
the poverty line and carry great emotional baggage. The pair is striving
against dreadful social challenges. Thulas is an obsessive, controlling,
somewhat emotionally fragile, young man. He is willing to do anything to
protect his younger sister. Zanele on the other hand, naively sees a sugar
daddy as an escape from the horrendous reality.
It’s
been a long time coming since I have literally found myself sitting on the edge
of my seat. You cannot really blame me because of the intense and compelling
drama demonstrated by the characters. While there’s a state of gloom and
torment, in other scenes, there’s fairly glee and merriment. This allows the
audience to cudgel their brains on what they have seen.
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