Wild Is the Wind

As this South African film opens we see police officer Vusi Matsoso accepting a bribe from a speeding motorist. Afterwards he splits the money with his partner, John Smit. As the driver pulls away we see he has a young woman trussed up in the boot of his car. Three years later Matsoso and Smit are more corrupt; they raid a drug den, killing the criminals and taking their drugs to sell to local criminals. Meanwhile there is the murder of another young woman, this time she is an Afrikaner. Racial tensions flare when suspicions fall on her black boyfriend. The events that follow will test Matsoso and Smit's friendship; will they do the right thing or take the easy options?

I thought this was a really solid crime drama. It started really well. We know from the opening scene that our protagonists are corrupt, the only question is whether their corruption is taking bribes for minor offences and robbing drug dealers or whether they will be willing to ruin innocent lives for their own benefit. The story deals with the racial tensions that are inevitably still present in South Africa without feeling as if it is a lecture. The main strength of the film is its acting and direction. Mothusi Magano and Frank Rautenbach really impress as Matsoso and Smit and even those in secondary roles are good. Fabian Medea does a great job directing. The South African landscape adds a lot to the atmosphere of the film; the rugged veldt gives the film the feel of a western at times. While the identity of the man who killed the Afrikaner girl is unlikely to surprise anybody there are a few other moments that do come as a surprise, one time tragically so. Overall I'd definitely recommend this to fans of crime drama looking for something set outside North America or Europe. It would be nice to see more great drama coming out of Africa.

It must be noted that although Netflix suggests this is an English language film most of the dialogue is in subtitled Afrikaans; I didn't find that to be a problem but others might want to be aware before watching.

Maybe not entirely crime film, but an unusual scheme in this South African movie where you have no really lead character, no hero, only characters for whom you wonder what feeling you can have. It is question of a serial killer intrigue mixed up with a rogue cops element. You have convincing performances and situations too. It is however a bit slow, but again, this is a worth watching movie where you can also watch as a buddy movie, a White and Black cop working together as a team, without being entirely LETHAL WEAPON either. It is of course question of racial matters in this South African feature; this explains the buddy scheme with two different races characters. A very short tribute to QT's RESERVOIR DOGS in the scene of the serial killer dancing around the car trunk with a gasoline can; remember Michael Madsen sequence dancing besides the tortured cop. Good ending.

The film offers an interesting view of a South African town and township and highlights the continuing inequality characterizing South Africa. The town very much has the feel of a southern town in the US in the 1960's where racial inequality was stark, racial attitudes and privileges were potent and very much in your face, even as many in society tried to move forward. The take of the criminals in the black community justifying their criminality as a reasonable response to racism was compelling and the tension between the white and black cops felt authentic. There are no purely good guys in the movie (though there are a couple of good, very noble women) and only one irredeemably evil guy. On the whole I thought it was a very good flick, if a bit melodramatic. It didn't offer the relatively happy ending I was expecting, but it was perhaps more realistic as a result. Innocent people are sometimes railroaded, police do knowingly charge innocent people if they're under duress to produce a suspect and in South Africa and in the South Africa, murders of whites still prompt more vigorous efforts by authorities to find the killers than murders of black people. It isn't a pleasant film and it doesn't say much positive about human nature, but it's a good movie.

Comes out of nowhere this South African drama with great actors which are not very well known in the US. Filmed in the traditional South African dialect, English viewers will need closed captions to understand the dialogues.

The engrossing crime drama is about searching for the responsible person(s) for the rape and murder of an18 years old white girl in a town, woven with racial distrust, inequality, injustice, and corruption.

The film starts with two police officers stopping a car for speeding. Unbeknownst to the police, the driver has a ducked-up woman in the trunk. They accept a cash bribe instead of searching the car. They later learn that a woman was burnt to death in the same car. This event changes the officer's played Mothusi Mogano's life. He occasionally sees her, directing him toward the clues.

It is solid entertainment and a great performance. A Must watch!

The only reason for the 1 star short is the scoring. Being a South African growing up pre and pos apartheid and a lover of music. There were alot more controversial and fitting songs released. However knowing the industry and copyright issues I get it. Do look forward to seeing more from Fabian. The cinematography was great. The story line is relevant and relatable. Think alot of these other reviews would've had a different perspective if it was some holiwood greats starring in it. But this has Oscar potential written all over it. Loved the story line. Would love to do the scoring for his next movie.