Back of the Moon review – Nostalgic look at Sophiatown

Back of the Moon is another milestone for the South African film industry and goes back in time in order to draw its inspiration.

Nostalgia runs rampant here as this edgy narrative revisits a colourful era in Johannesburg’s turbulent history. It does a superb job visualising Sophiatown as it was, the city’s only true melting pot of culture, music, style and the ever haunting omnipresence of the gangsters’ brigade.

This was also the time of forced removals and the heavy hand of apartheid.

Set during one night, July 28, 1958, the story revolves around the relationship between a tough gangster named Badman (Richard Lukunku) and a celebrity jazz singer Eve Msomi (Moneoa Moshesh), whom everybody loves.

The fly in the ointment, however, is Eve’s abusive boxer boyfriend, Strike (S’Dumo Mtshali), a jealous individual who lets his lethal fists do the talking.

The setting is the eve of Sophiatown being demolished by the apartheid police and the reaction of its inhabitants. Some of them are partying; others are in despair. Eve is happy because she will be leaving the country to appear in theatre in London.

This character, played with conviction by Moshesh in her first lead role, is a feisty female in an age when the word, empowerment, was almost unknown. She has to find ways and means to survive – even if some of her choices are unpalatable.

Lukunku is commanding as Badman, an intellectual and the leader of The Vipers, the most feared gang in Sophiatown. The carefully orchestrated opening sequence as Badman dresses for the day sets the milieu.

The stranglehold gangsters had on the unfortunate population depicted here was a truly frightening phenomenon.

Backed by a strong narrative, well developed characters and some great acting, this production serves up some wonderfully atmospheric moments in its look and tone. The film’s sepia textures also work well.

However, there were issues in the directing department where I found the pace often leaden, with too many pregnant pauses interrupting the flow. The graphic violence, too, proved a disturbing factor.

Director Angus Gibson has elicited performances from his large cast that manage to overcome some of my misgivings.

The film’s title is culled from a famous watering hole in Sophiatown which attracted all manner of denizens.

Info

Rating: ★★★★☆
Cast: Richard Lukunku, Moneoa Moshesh, S’Dumo Mtshali
Director: Angus Gibson (vernacular with English subtitles)
Classification: 18 DLNPS (SV) V

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