1)
Relate what was
discussed in class or the text to the screening.
In class we discussed the
film Tsotsi’s award winning status
and how it showed South African culture. We touched on the issue of poverty and
AIDS and how they are shown in the film. In the Cinema of South Africa notes it
explains the country’s economy and how has a middle income, which is also shown
in the film. In the book Media and Translation: An Interdisciplinary Approach,
it discusses the meaning of the word Tsotsi and how it is a difficult word to translate
into English. The word Tsotsi means a township criminal or street wise
criminal, which is applied to younger men who are poor and out casted. Using
the word adds emphasis to the film portraying a thug, who most would see as a villain,
having a redeemable quality and who we would grow to care for (Abend-David, 55).
2) Find
a related article and summarize the content.
(on the film, director, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, etc.)
You can use the library or the internet.
Cite the article and copy the link to your journal entry. Summarize in
your own words the related article but do not plagiarize any content. Make sure your link is a true hyperlink that
will connect to the article you are referencing.
The
New York Times Review of the film Tsotsi, discusses how the director created an
Academy Award winning film when creating a story already seen multiple times in
Hollywood. Firstly, he uses color photography so the audience can feel the
emotion and the psychological efforts Tsotsi is experiencing. He also made
Tsotsi appear cold hearted throughout the beginning of the film, never making
him a loser or a winner due to the concept being a blurred line. The director
also uses the baby as a gift for Tsotsi, as the child is his key to redeem
himself despite his troubling future. What really makes the film an award
winner is the fact that the audience does feel sympathy for this character even
if he is flawed.
3) Apply
the article to the film screened in class.
How did the article support or change the way you thought about the
film, director, content, etc.?
The
article briefly touches on color photography and Tsotsi is a colorful film, with bright oranges and reds and other vibrant
colors. The red and oranges shows South Africa’s heat and dirt, and the dirty
look reminds us of Tsotsi’s poverty. When the film shows bright colors like
blue or white it shows the hope for the uncertain, and these colors we see when
Tsotsi meets Miriam and when he goes to surrender the baby. The article changed how I saw the movie because
it makes you realize how much thought the director put when creating the film,
instead of making the typical thug film, he made Tsotsi human because no one is
morally black or white. He wants the audience to care for the thug whose life
was shaped by a troubled past.
4) Write
a critical analysis of the film, including your personal opinion, formed as a
result of the screening, class discussions, text material and the article. I am less interested in whether you liked or
disliked a film, (although that can be part of this) than I am in your understanding
of its place in film history or the contributions of the director.
Tsotsi was
a film I enjoyed a lot, I thought the acting, music, and message were strong
and stood out from the other movies we viewed in class. Presley Chweneyagae,
the actor for Tsotshi/ David, did his best portraying a character who needed to
be reserved and remorseless if he wanted to be respected by his crew. He wants
those weaker than him to suffer, however the pain of his past causes him to
feel empathy for them and attempts to fix his mistakes. He wants to help the
baby by trying to keep him alive even though he was the one to take him away
from his family. He also wants to save John Dube from being killed by Butcher
but again he is the reason John is in danger to begin with. Tsotsi causes many
of the characters trouble but he redeems himself in audience’s eyes by doing
the right thing, which is easy to believe thanks to Presley Chweneyagae’s
performance.
The film’s music also made the movie
stronger because it made scenes more captivating instead of bland. For
instance, in the scene where Tsotsi brings the baby to the place he lived as a
runaway the music that plays adds intensity to the moment. The song is also
rough and gritty, which represents the children who wander over to speak to
Tsotsi. The children are already living a life where they must fight to
survive, which Tsotsi understands because he still lives that same way. The song
is meant to show his life will always be tough, and age doesn’t make it easier.
The message of Tsotsi is also important because it finds a way to diverge from the
usual Hollywood story and create a tale of redemption that is believable and likable.
We know Tsotsi is flawed, his not a hero his a troubled man who got the wrong
lot in life. However, he sees that others are like him, and he learns that he
is not the only one to suffer and everyone has a reason to act a certain way.
Instead of giving into his suffering he decides to be better than his abusive father
and take a step forward. He loves the baby as his own but he realizes that the
right thing to do is to give him back to his family where he will be raised
will and not grow up to be like him. The thug grows up and is no longer the
child who ran away from home, and will somehow find hope for the future.
References
Abend-David,
D. (2016). Media and translation: an interdisciplinary approach. London:
Bloomsbury.
Dargis,
M. (2006, February 24). From South Africa, a Tough Thug Shows His Big Heart.
Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/24/movies/from-south-africa-a-tough-thug-shows-his-big-heart.html
CHECKLIST
FOR PLAGIARISM
1)
( X) I have not handed in this assignment
for any other class.
2)
( X) If I reused any information from
other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the
paper.
3)
(X ) If I used any passages word for
word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation
within the text.
4)
(X ) I have not padded the bibliography.
I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.
5)
( X ) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.
6)
(X ) I have used direct quotations only
in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within
the paper and in the bibliography.
7)
( X ) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks
interpretation or originality.
8)
( X ) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent
about the research and ideas used in my paper.
Name:
_____Melanie Flores_________________________________ Date: ________4/10/17____________________
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