Cape of Good Hope - Mark Bamford

This South African film (though made by a first-time American director), is a slice-of-life comedy-drama about a woman running an animal centre in Cape Town, and the people who work there, their lifes and loves. It's a light and gentle film which acknowledges all of South Africa's complexities but doesn't dwell on them. There are parallel stories for black, Indian, and white characters, each with its own unique and predictable set of problems.

The script is well written, the cast (all South African actors) is uniformly strong. Very likeable, basically, and popular at the screening. V and I enjoyed it at the time, and have spent a lot of time subsequently debating whether a film like this makes sense from such a traumatized nation...and ultimately I decided that it didn't work for me. I don't believe you can ignore (or trivialize) the deep-seeded grief in South Africa even ten years after democracy. Certainly many people in SA do exist (or attempt to) on the level portrayed in the film, and the country is doing what it can to forgive and forget, but anyone having lived through the past twenty years knows that the healing will take another generation (interesting comparison between this film and Red Dust). For the here and now, this film feels false, or at the very least, naive.

It's worth noting that Mark Bamford and his wife, who co-wrote and mounted the production, have lived in Cape Town for only four years. Cape of Good Hope very likely reflects their perspective honestly, but I don't buy it. Interesting and enjoyable but highly flawed.