Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight

The days of independent 'arthouse' movie theaters are, sadly, mostly a thing of the past unless you live in a market that can support one. This film would certainly land there if there were any. I was rapt with the story , cinematography . . . And . . . Acting. Some of the shot set ups are remarkedly artistic and original. The main character, a young child is in practically every shot and scene and could not be more believable in that portrayal and you are always seeing things from her point of view and nothing is ever hyped or remotely artificial. I hesitated to give the movie eight stars only because I reserve that for only the very best and special kind of movies but this one is at that level because everything and I mean everything works and it is great story on a deeply human level. No one is pigeon holed , you can relate to anyone of them. Not Hollywood ,studio fare, best movie I have seen in quite some time.

This film doesn't hold back any punches depicting White racism and black oppression and the violence of the times. An excellent realistic depiction of both white and black southern Africa at that time, where white southern Africans were driven into a corner in the country they had had ruled for decades from a legacy of European imperialism, where they too end up being victims of their own culture. This was all perfectly portrayed and captured an accurate time capsule of modern African history. Brilliant acting by Ms Venter who plays the free spirited young protagonist whose unvarnished and unrelenting view of the world she inhabits brings into conflict with everyone around her. Her performance is completely natural and powerful and drives the narrative with complete authenticity.

Having read and thoroughly enjoyed all of Alexandra Fuller's (Bobo) non-fiction books, this film was inconsistent with the author's presentation of, well, everything. In the book her parents are written as free spirits who live life fully and while surely not traditional, are refreshing opposites of today's over- protective "helicopter" parents.

The film shows the very real lifelong wounds of a child growing up through the dangers of a war zone and is a strong reminder that resonates today. But the book also recognizes the values of living a life that allows experiences to teach us lessons of living with a passion for true freedom of expression.

In the book both views are beautifully interwoven without judgement and thankfully are not presented as what would be a false dichotomy.

This film shows a bleak view of the parents, the life, and only the spirit of wonderful little Bobo. Bobo's spirit comes from her parent's example and the film doesn't even hint at that.

It's difficult to review a film like this because it wants you to feel bad for it's characters but they're all kind of terrible people. Fantastic acting from all parties involved but I think a few of the scripts issues that makes this movie more trashy than it needed to be.

There is a very uncomfortable scene that happens towards the middle of the film that really did not need to be there. It's only glaced upon once more in the film and it did nothing for the story. If you've seen it, you know what I mean.

There's also a simplicity to this story that felt like it only got skin deep for me. The political climate in that part of the world is volatile to say the least, but the film doesn't really show enough of that to make us feel like real danger is looming. Just some couple who are loosing their farm to the native people of that land. Interesting, but not as deep or thoughtful as it could've been.

Overall, not a bad film, but not a particularly good one either. The film seems to wallow in this pit of a crappy childhood as opposed to the realism of the danger these people put themselves in and the lack of care for the native people of that land. Personally, for me, it dragged the film down and made what should've been a hard hitting story into something that was difficult to relate to.

2.5 dogs out of 5.

The time period is around 1980, as Rhodesia became Zimbabwe. It shows the effect of the political change on one farm family, plus the white and black communities around them.

The story is told from the viewpoint of Bobo, an 8-year-old girl. She shares her room with her teenage sister. Their father is a soldier, and can be on duty away from home for periods of time. The heart of the family is their mother, for whom their cattle farm is her life, even though she also is a part-time police desk officer. They have two black servants, Jacob and Sarah, and Bobo seems closer to Sarah than her own mother. While Bobo is fascinated by black culture, she has learned to treat all black people as an underclass.

Ironically, for the secondary characters, the relationships between the members of the black community are more murky than the relationships between the members of the white community.

At the start, the Bush War is still going on. Terrorists are killing whites, and mother sleeps with a gun by her side. We go to the 1980 election, where mother implores the blacks she knows to vote for "The Bishop" - a centrist politician. But when Marxist Mugabe wins, the whites have to decide whether to leave or to try and stick it out.

The film is based on a personal memoir from 2021. There is a disclaimer that, while based on actual events, there have been fictionalizations for dramatic reasons. The time line seems to have been compressed. The sister is hanging around the home all the time, with no indication that she is being home-schooled, so she should mostly be away in boarding school somewhere.

With that caveat, the film works. Bobo is a delight to watch, and writer / director / star (the mother) Embeth Davidtz does a good portrayal of someone who lives under multiple stresses.