Stander

_Stander_ was completely fascinating, from start to finish. I don't know when the last time was I saw a movie that I enjoyed so completely. It really was like some overlooked classic from the early 70s, in the styles and the composition. The colors have just the right washed-out look to make you think this film might be a contemporary of films like _Dog Day Afternoon_ or _Network_. And the settings, the costumes, the cars--all the period details bring us right back to the mid-70s. Never having visited South Africa and not really knowing that much about it, I almost feel like I've had a bit of a crash course in South African history and culture after watching the film. It's amazing that Thomas Jane, who hasn't exactly had the most memorable career to date, could so completely inhabit this character and bring him to life. This is the same guy who was the romantic lead in the insipid _The Sweetest Thing_! And the morose protagonist of _The Punisher_. He needs to keep stretching and looking for these more offbeat roles. And it's always a pleasure to see the beautiful Deborah Kara Unger in a film--here she plays Stander's wife. I won't recount the plot--plenty of other posters have already--but just urge you to rent this movie if you get the chance. It was immensely entertaining.

I've seen my share of South African films, being a South African myself, and I can tell you with pride and without hesitation that this was one of the best films from my country I've ever seen. I felt the protagonist's confusion and frustration. I cannot remember the last time I've wanted the bad guy to escape more than in this movie.

"ebhp1" commented on the accent, which made it difficult to understand the dialogue. I think it was a functional and very important part of the movie in an attempt to make it REAL. A movie about South Africans with an American accent? No. It's like making a British film French accents... I do have to congratulate the American actors who handled the accent so well. I even wondered if they were South African!

I take my hat off to you. A great movie with great actors.

As a South African who's had to sit through a bunch of films on South Africa(ns) that made me cringe, I have to firstly send congratulations to the actors and dialogue coaches on achieving what has to be the first believable South African accents by international actors. Bravo! (Michael Caine and Sydney Poitier can take the the cotton-wool out their mouths now).

André Stander was a young police captain who in the early 80's robbed a string of banks while still in the employ of the South African Police Service. Finally caught, Stander spent time in jail before escaping to form a gang and continue the spree. His flamboyance, charm and cheek caught the imagination of the South African public who followed his exploits excitedly in the press and on tv. Well known for outfoxing the police through trickery, elaborate disguises and plain disregard for risk, he had people on the edge of their seat - most hoping he'd never get caught.

The movie sticks with the basic story and adds the usual Hollywood glam that while pumped up to fit in with other bank-robber fare, does not ruin the plot. From a beautifully shot opening sequence of an aerial view of Johannesburg, the film immediately sets up the great contrast of this city as existed in the apartheid 80's in the living conditions of the rich pool-and-tennis-court-suburbia(almost totally white) to the poor townships(non-white). A situation that while changing is still present today. Inner-city Johannesburg is the perfect place for a film of this era. The city-centre is full of buildings, murals and statues erected during the 70's boom-time and the film makes great use of these landmarks that surround the car and foot chases through the streets and city markets. The wardrobe is spot-on, the stylists have got it right. Nothing is overdone and no-one looks out of place. South Africans will be delighted by the memories and cultural references. While the lead actors are British and American, they are surrounded by a very capable South African supporting cast.

The film makers probably take a bit of license with Stander's motivations as far as his disgust with the ruling policies, but they're never over the top and additionally make room for placing more political content into a story that would arguably be uncomfortably white for a youngish democracy such as ours. Following this, the protest scenes are believable and tense. The violence is hard-hitting and impactful. The humour and stereotypes will make you smile.

Style and acting aside, there are some awkward moments. Parts of the film struggle with context. We have scenes of hard country driving for no discernable reason other than a chat with the characters. We see little of the planning involved for the robberies and a couple of acts of redemption by Stander are hard to swallow. Sometimes it's as if the film makers wanted to fit too much into the two hours and instead let the pace slacken.

While a little long and at times slow moving, Stander was a real pleasure to watch. I laughed out loud many times, and felt really emotional looking back on a society that was in a bad place. The police clashes with protesters brought tears to my eyes and the attitude and motivations of the typical white male is genuine and appropriate. I think this film deserves a tighter overall edit and a possibly re-shoot of a rushed, unconvincing end scene, however I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it, if only for a spot-on glimpse of SA life twenty years ago.

I Just got back from a screening of This film at the Sundance film festival, and there are some corrections that need to be made from some of the other comments. After the screening the director did a Q&A where when asked was all this true, she said oddly enough "the outrageous stuff was true, and we had to add normal plot fillers to help it dramatically."

Stander never planned his robberies, he was a criminal who was sick of seeing the violence against the unarmed citizens, and tired of the crookedness of police life, that he rebelled against the system, just as a political act, not a need for money.

This film has plenty of great action scenes and alot of great comedy as well as brilliant acting by the whole cast, especially Thomas Jane who shines as Stander.

Outside of the violence and fun, there is a very powerful moral story, one of right and wrong, politics and the lonely life of a criminal. One theme I love was repeated throughout, and that is that the wrong man is always punished, or killed, when we should be looking at our government officials and their corruption, we spend too much time on the little criminals.

Very fascinating, and fun to watch, as well as thought provoking, once again the Q&A would answer all of the problems other posters had with the film, because the stuff they did not like was the actual facts behind the characters lives, just AMAZING!!

In 1976, in Johannesburg, the efficient anti-racist Homicide/Robbery Police Captain Andre Stander (Thomas Jane) has a nervous breakdown after killing an unarmed man in an apartheid protest. Stander decides to confront and mock the established corrupt system heisting twenty-six banks while working for the police department. He is captured and sentenced to thirty-two years in prison; however, he succeeds to escape with the criminals Lee McCall (Dexter Fletcher) and Allan Heyl (David Patrick O'Hara) and together they form "The Stander Gang" and rob another twenty banks in six months.

"Stander" tells the story of the notorious Afrikaner bank robber and former police captain Andre Stander. The movie works perfectly as an action movie, but if the intention was to give any political connotation to the actions of the anti-hero Stander, it completely fails. Stander is shown as an efficient but unbalanced man in love for his wife performed by the gorgeous Deborah Kara Unger that defies the system, not like a Robin Hood or to protect the black people, but for self-profit only. Thomas Jane has a great performance in the role of this complex character. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Stander – Um Policial Contra o Sistema" ("Stander – A Policeman Against the System")