Uitvlucht

The non-linnear story-telling of 'Uitvlucht' makes the film a bit difficult to follow (and understand) at first, but you'll get the hang of it once you get into the movie.

The film starts with a young man, Willie (Clyde Berning) having a fight with his wife Dina (Lika Berning). He then gets in his car and drives to the farm of Joshua (Carel Trichardt), whom he calls "Oom" (uncle - but not related). When Willie picks up a stone with an inscription on it, and shows it to Joshua, flood gates of memories open and Joshua starts telling Willie a story from 1994.

The story revolves around Anna, who starts working at a little primitive farm school called 'Uitvlucht' after her divorce. Anna had an affair with Deon (Marcel Schoeman), who left his family for her, but she doesn't want him in her life anymore.

On the farm, Anna meets Dok (Stian Bam), a 'gentle giant' who lost his wife in a car accident a few years ago. I'm not going to do spoilers, but with this being a romantic comedy, you can pretty much guess where this is headed. But with 'Uitvlucht' the journey wasn't quite as simple as with most other (South African) romance films.

The film deals with many issues, and moral values. It does become a bit too preachy towards the end, and this is when you realize the film prepared you for spreading the word of God. All good, if you're into that, I suppose, but for me there were moments that felt like it was forcing religious views onto its viewers. 'Uitvlucht' is a religious movie disguised as a romantic comedy.

The film's cinematography is beautiful and I loved the subtle, melodic score. 'Uitvlucht' felt realistic, and the performances were very natural. By the time the film ends, you'll realize just how romantic it really is, and how different it is to other romance films.