Tsotsi [DVD] [2006]

An incredibly moving film. It takes a while to get going at the start, but it transforms into a very moving story that is quite profound. Recommended.

Tsotsi is a moving and sensitively made film about youths in a Johannesburg township and their relationships with each other. In all too familiar grinding poverty and violence the very fragile line between life and death is crossed many times and an even more fragile and slow growth of a single youth's self-respect is encouraged by an accidental kidnapping. The township and its denizens are filmed without romance but the shanties and glimpses of the people's lives in them conveys a strong message. Just living conditions, rather than handouts come to the viewer's mind as robbery and violence among the black inhabitants illumines the death of self-respect in humilitating and abject poverty. Amidst the dirt, blood and abuse of man and beast, there is the recognition and valuing of decency which brings its own light into a dark, desperate situation. This is a must-see film which makes one realise how precious is life, self-respect and decency. It's heavy but utterly inspiring. APL

reat performances on a simple plot with good tension. A portrait of what poverty can get you into.

Tsotsi is ultimately an uplifting film set in the brutal and hopeless world of a young man (Tsotsi) living in a shanty town outside Johannesburg.Tsotsi is a scary character, callous and violent. He survives on the profit of crime and in the pursuit of one nights work an unlikely person gets entangled in his life. In his own distorted way Tsotsi has found someone to love and someone who is fully dependent on him for survival. A survival which seems precarious and adds to the tension of the film.The film is I believe a story of the search for love and how in starting to care for another, one's life can be transformed. Tsotsi's life seems hopeless but hope and redemption seem a possibility for him as his conscience gradually awakens and the consequences of his criminal life come to a dramatic climax.

It's ok, nothing more or less. It's nowhere near as good as City of God, unfortunately. The start of the film seems unnecessarily overly violent, and the ending is all too sudden. Worth a watch once, but I doubt you'll want to watch it again.

This is a brilliant film, which I have watched at least 6 times and cry every time! This is set in Johannesburg, South Africa and shows the sad a frightening reality of poverty and crime in South Africa. In the street language of Johannesburg, Tsotsi means a street thug or gang member - an appropriate moniker for the main character (Presley Chweneyagae) in this brutal, gripping drama. Tsotsi's mean life of thievery and murder is thrown when a carjacking episode leaves him caring for a young baby. Repressed memories of his own wretched childhood surface and watching the realisation of what he's become dawn on him is powerful stuff. Tsotsi [DVD] [2006 ]

I immediately watched this twice as it is fascinating, moving, horrifying and jaw-dropping all at once.The young actors were relatively unknown when this film was made but their talent is extraordinary. The director really knows how to create emotion and atmosphere and to get the best from the actors.The DVD contains a lot of behind the scenes info on the filming, on South African society and even a mini documentary which is fascinating.The less you read about the story itself before watching it the bettter - it should all come as a surprise to you.

Watched this when I was younger and still as good :)

bon film

¿Que Pasa? That is Spanish for what’s up and while it is entirely possible for a reader to understand what I was saying, there are probably far more who won’t. Films are widely praised as the definitive art form because they combine visuals, sound, acting, and many other features to create the ultimate experience, but unfortunately, not all films are spoken in our native tongue. Many people refuse to see a film if they have to use subtitles to understand it and while that is completely understandable, Tsotsi is a film I would recommend to any film lover. The basic story of this movie is that Tsotsi, the protagonist of the film and a gang leader, makes a mistake that he regrets almost immediately after he does it. After stealing a car (while crippling a woman in the process, no less), he realizes that there is a baby in the backseat. Woops! While the film establishes early on that Tsotsi is not a saint, stealing a baby was not his intention. The rest of the film might seem obvious, as it is rather predictable, but that is just the skin of this excellent movie. You could say (which I will) that the baby serves as a catalyst for the rest of the movie and is really just what propels the plot, but I mean that in a good way. Although Tsotsi is a gang leader who steals for a living, he is not a simple cardboard cutout; he is a complex character with a tragic backstory, which I think is the absolute highlight of the film. A specific scene that I loved occurred roughly halfway through the film and is a flashback about his family (which he briefly mentioned before). The scene is phenomenal and well executed (and very sad), but even without that scene (which there are a few of), you could still sense that he had a troubled childhood. Earlier in the film, near the beginning, someone mentions his parents and he completely loses it on that person, beating him to a pulp. Scenes like those are what make the film because they show what a complex character Tsotsi is, despite his exterior of a tough bad boy; Presley Chweneyagae, the actor who plays him, does a great job with facial expressions, especially his menacing stare. It is difficult to describe the character arc that the movie shows without spoilers and although it is somewhat obvious where it is going, it is so well done that I loved it. Aside from the story, the other major part of the film that stuck out to me was the music, which I loved half of and hated the other half of. Tsotsi roughly translates to thug and the movie has a lot of rap music, which many people (including myself) associate with thugs. This fits his character, but I just hate that style of music, so it didn’t really do it for me. So, I hated it subjectively, but I thought that it fit objectively. The other half of the music is amazing and creates a somber tone that I think fits with the film (the end credits, specifically, are a treat for the ears). Is the movie worth seeing? Absolutely! While any movie can be nitpicked, this is one of the few movies that I have watched that didn’t have any glaring flaws on my first viewing. It is not perfect, but it is so well done that I was totally immersed. Tsotsi is a remarkable character played by a remarkable actor and it is definitely a film that I would watch again. Check it out.

me encanto,una pelicula con mucho corazon ,la vida en los slums,gente pobre y criminal,pero tienen amor y corazon muy grande

Habe den Film im Englisch-Unterricht benutzt. Die Schüler (Alter 16-17 Jahre, 10. Klasse Gymnasium) die meist alles langweilig oder uncool finden, waren von dem Film sehr beeindruckt. Ich übrigens auch!Ich hatte die Schüler auf einige, besonders gewalttätige Anfangs-Szenen vorbereitet, damit sie den Film nicht gleich in eine Schublade stecken, in die er nicht hineingehört, sondern sich auf den Film einlassen können. Also, für alle Interessierten: die Gewaltszenen sind integraler Bestandteil eines ansonsten nicht gewalttätigen Films.Ich kann den Film allen nur empfehlen!Viel Spass beim Eintauchen in eine fremde, unbekannte Welt!

Item shipped very fast and was very affordable. Only issue was that the case the DVD arrived in had a crack on it which made it difficult to open the case without enlarging the crack. However, this crack likely could have occured during the shipping process and not beforehand. The DVD was in perfect condition.