Tsotsi

Tsotsi (Chweneyagae) is a cold, gun-toting street hoodlum from the township of Soweto in South Africa who likes nothing more than robbing the rich and keeping an eye on a single mother Pumla Dube (Mpumlwana) in his neighbourhood. But when he shoots a defenceless woman in an attempted carjack, Tsotsi finds her baby in the back seat. Deliberating whether or not to leave the baby for dead, Tsotsi amazes himself when he takes the infant home to his shack. Soon the baby's cries get to Tsotsi and he has no choice but to approach Pumla for help in feeding the child. With the cops on the case and the net closing in, Tsotsi finds himself growing attached to the baby and unable to give him up.

Winner of the 'Truly Moving Picture Award' at the Heartland Film Festival, which promotes films that artistically express hope and respect for the positive values of life, Tsotsi is a real winner but not before showing us the worst of humanity first. The apathetic Tsotsi cares not for human life and even one of his own gang members asks him, "Decency, do you know the word?" as he harasses a homeless cripple. The shooting of the woman in cold blood is totally unnecessary and almost an afterthought during the carjack, but this is the whole point, as Tsotsi gains redemption from the worst thing he has ever done. Even though it sounds like the film gets a little soft around the edges, Tsotsi amazes at every turn - holding Mpumlwana at gun point as she breastfeeds the baby shows the nature of the man who, even though he is trying to do the right thing, he does the wrong thing since aggression is all he knows. Writer Gavin Hood directs with confidence and sometimes even gives the film an epic feel; wide shots of the township recall David Lean at his best, while first time actor Chweneyagae takes centre stage like a veteran on a mission.