ScoobyMint Disappointment for a huge fan!

Grimossfer Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

FrogGlace In other words,this film is a surreal ride.

Brendon Jones It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

David Joffe I grew up in Pretoria in the 70s and 80s during Apartheid, and the way Bronwen Hughes has managed to reconstruct, capture and convey the overall "feel" of the time is nothing short of remarkable - this movie practically transported me back to my childhood. Her achievement is particularly impressive given she is Canadian - her achievement here warrants more praise, and it is a bit sad that the average non-South-African viewer would never truly be able to appreciate just what she has managed to pull off here.Thomas Jane's South African accent is by far the best I've seen in a movie.

ellycat17 After picking up the movie almost solely for the purpose of watching Tom Jane the actual content and brilliance of the story was shocking. Even after I realized it wasn't my normal kind of movie I was compelled to watch, completely caught up in the lives and fates of the characters. Even more compelling due to the fact that it tells a true story there's a sense of real involvement with the people and their story. For people born after the 70's and far away from South Africa this era is something almost make believe but this movie brings it to glorious and heart breaking true life. Great acting, great story, well worth watching.

jonathan45 Andre Stander is a white south African detective living and working under Apartheid. He has a beautiful wife and a respected high ranking father. We first encounter Stander at a moment of happiness in his life, he is getting married. But this happiness is short lived as Stander and the police are brought in to a township to crush an uprising of protesting blacks. The riot scene is shot in realistic fashion- giving a real feel of violence about to erupt on both sides. The camera remains tight on Standers face as he shoots his shotgun in to the belly of a rushing protester and then emptying the weapon in to the crowd of unarmed black protesters, Thomas Jane does a great job of showing some complex emotions here- disgust and rage and even the thrill of adrenaline. We get an inkling of how Stander feels about what he has done when he beats up a boasting sub-ordinate cop for a callous remark after the massacre. Unable to come to terms with the regime he protects Stander has a kind of breakdown and on a whim robs a bank. He later returns- in a tense and funny scene as the investigating officer!. Stander robs bank after bank in a variety of disguises and seems unmotivated by the money he steals with such brazen confidence, indeed we come to realise the act of robbing is more an act of defiance for the government he now despises coupled with a kind of release. When Stander is finally caught by his own friends in the police is it relief we see on his face?. Stander is sentenced for a long time, and in a key scene in court he tells the judge that he has fired upon unarmed men- this is what he feels he should be on trial for we are led to believe. In jail Stander meets two fellow cons who also have robbed banks and together they escape. The trio name themselves the 'Stander gang' and become notorious outlaws thrilling and terrifying the public. The other criminals enjoy the easy money, however for Stander the adrenaline of his crimes is no longer enough to keep him distracted from his inner turmoil and he seeks out the father of the young man who he shot years ago in the riots. He is beaten with a club by the distraught man who doesn't kill Stander, instead turning away in disgust. The angry father however cannot beat out Standers inner demons who are pushing him toward a bloody self destruction. By now the police are closing in on the gangs hideout and a bloody shoot out occurs killing one member of the gang much to Standers horror. Stander flees the country for America. Safe in the states in a moving scene he contacts his father by phone under a false identity- as the cops are bugging the line and lets him know he respects and loves his father. America offers little peace of mind for Stander, though we are shown the difference in the cultures as blacks are on equal footing with whites here.In an anger and drink fuelled burst of emotions he runs a red light and is pulled over by two cops, refusing to follow their orders he fights one cop for his shotgun and is shot numerous times by the other officer. a violent end to a man who was full of self loathing and disgust at his crimes. Well what can i say about this movie..., Thomas Jane gives a blazing performance with a difficult role and complex character. Thank god this wasn't given the banal t.v movie treatment. Thomas Jane is an uneven actor sometimes amazing ( as in this film) and sometimes..well rubbish ( as in Deep Blue Sea). The rest of the cast are excellent and pull off the difficult job of portraying real people with skill. I would recommend this movie for anyone who likes excellent acting and intelligent scripting and stylish , thrilling direction.

kg584 Since my original post 14 months have gone by and I finally broke down and purchased a copy of the DVD on line for 4.99 plus shipping, a very inexpensive rate and just watched it this morning. Considering how films usually butcher the facts this was really 90% accurate.I found the sound a minor problem, had to turn it up several times to hear what was being said.In the trailer I noted his wife had committed suicide in 1990, that was very sad, must have been hard on her and his father also.Those little things which were wrong (but still enjoyable) were: 1) His death was not as shown, 2) The airport scene where he was stopped and then let go did not happen, 3) The passport used to leave SA was obtained differently and was actually that of an a SAA employee named Harris, 4) The film did not show the prison he was in at the time he escaped (Zonderwater, N. of Pretoria) and the shop scenes where he worked were not accurate as they had no such elaborate shop facilities at Z.I don't intend to be picky, I did like the film and will watch it again soon. No film sticks exactly to facts but this one was darn close and the changes probably made for a better film.I'm not sure it ever made it to a general release in the US, just some film shows here and there and I haven't seen it on cable either. Go to ebay and get yourself a copy it is worth it.