the tsotsi vs the big mamma

listenin to: some kak music

yes tsotsi won the oscar. in a way it has almost been bitter sweet. i hope more sweet than bitter but the more i read the more bitter it is. many reviewers, critics and articles on tsotsi have spoken about the story as told from the point of a white director and the implications of this. some national newspapers have attempted to test the authenticity of the movie by getting together groups of people to watch the movie. many former tsotsis have commented that the life of a real tsotsi is much harsher and the movie was merely a watered down version. personally, the colour of the director holds little value for me. if this were to be a talking point then black dj's should not be allowed to comment on typically euro-centric music and surely matthew ribbnik's depiction of south african indian life holds no value. the following is an excerpt from an article on the subject, on mg.co.za, "Tsotsi is a very interesting black story, told for a white audience," says Patience Bambalele, a writer for the Sowetan newspaper. She says black South Africans watching the film have scoffed at Hood's sympathetic portrait of the street ruffian. "The reality is," she says, "that the thug never cries."

i do believe that unless you walk in those shoes, you never quite feel the whole truth. however, tsotsi is not a black story told for a white audience. it is a story told for a south african audience. statistics show that most south africans are not interested in movies such as tsotsi or u-carmen e-khayelitsha and prefer to spend their money on the likes of Leon Schuster and his dose of slapstick comedy. gag. ironically enough those who complain about the lack of black actors on the big screen and others who whine about our movies not being good enough to be nominated at the oscars, are the very same people who will probably watch big mommas house over tsotsi. nothing wrong with big mommas house except that i don't recall it being nominated for much.

today i like: first class cricket
today i dislike: cold weather