Schmitz’s Life, Above All

Surely, the fall of Apartheid heralded a golden age for South Africa, right? Not exactly. In fact, the rhetoric and policies of several ANC administrations has been quite problematic, particularly with regards to the country’s AIDS epidemic. The resulting stigma surrounding the disease makes a tragic situation so much worse for the resilient young protagonist of Oliver Schmitz’s Life, Above All (trailer here), which opens this Friday in New York at Film Forum.

Chanda’s mother Lillian ought to have more energy. Everyone pretends it is nerves or some such ailment, but this is just willful denial. Everyone realizes what she has and understands she more than likely contracted it from Chanda’s absentee stepfather Jonah, who is now determined to drink and sin his way into the grave. Unfortunately, AIDS does not work that way.

In Chanda’s hardscrabble village outside Joburg, AIDS is not the only social pathology to contend with. Prostitution is considered the only means of survival for her shockingly young looking best friend Esther. Of course, this also involves the very real and present danger of infection.

Above is a blistering indictment of the superstitious prejudice and misogyny rampant in South African townships that forces patients into seclusion rather seeking life prolonging treatment, or at least a relatively comfortable death. Yet, despite the film’s palpable anger, it never lobs cheap shots at the church. In fact, Sunday services are presented as a rare moment of peace for Chanda.

Khomotso Manyaka’s fully dimensional portrayal of Chanda could well become iconic in South Africa. Despite the courage and tenacity she projects every step of the way, the audience remains keenly aware she is still just a vulnerable young girl. Yet, for pure hard-won pathos, Keabaka Makanyane’s Esther might even outdo her.

Re-emerging from years spent working in German television (in prestigious capacities), Oliver Schmitz returns to the sort of topical cinematic naturalism that made his breakout film Mapantsula the toast of the international festival circuit. Yet, that earlier work was very much a product of its era. In contrast, Above has a Dickensian quality that should hold up over time.

Perhaps the film’s ultimate conclusion may strike some viewers as a bit too pat and convenient. However, at this point Chanda the character has earned a break and most in the audience will probably be happy to allow it to her. Overall, Above paints an uncompromising picture of contemporary South Africa, redeemed only by the defiance of its young cast and characters. A heavy, engrossing film, Above is definitely recommended when it opens this Friday (7/15) at Film Forum.

South Africa at AFA: Mapantsula

“Panic” is hardly a revolutionary role model. He is a thief and a professional snitch, but finds himself radicalized in spite of himself in Oliver Schmitz’s Mapantsula (trailer here), which was duly banned under Apartheid, making it a fitting selection for the United We Stand: South African Cinema during Apartheid retrospective currently underway at the Anthology Film Archives.

Mapantsula had two screenplays: the shooting script co-written by Schmitz (a native white South African) and lead actor Thomas Mogotlane and the dummy version shown to the state censors. They were both stories about a small time gangster (or mapantsula), but there the similarities end. The formerly footloose Panic has been rounded-up with group of politicals. As usual, he is expected to rat out his cellmates, but this time events do not follow their regular course. In Schmitz’s split time frame, the audience also witnesses the not particularly edifying events that led Panic to that holding cell.

Frankly, the Panic of a few days prior to his arrest exhibits nearly sociopathic traits. He is cool enough to rob a white business man at knife point and then brazenly count his take in front of the man. It is never political though. Rather, it is simply an act of unrepentant self-interest. Indeed, he regularly sells out his colleagues and shamelessly sponges off his miserable girlfriend Pat. When his spiteful behavior even gets her fired from her domestic employment, it hardly registers with the hustler. However, Schmitz and Mogotlane clearly suggest Panic’s hardboiled everyman-for-himself attitude is ultimately untenable for black South African living under Apartheid.

Arguably, Mogotlane succeeds too well creating a portrait of a remorseless street tough, making it difficult to feel much during his later ordeals. It almost seems like a case of karma being what it is. Still, there is no denying the intensity of his performance. It really represents rather brave work, both in terms of the guerilla style of the production shoot and the unsympathetic nature of his on-screen character.

After extensive television work in Germany, Schmitz returned to feature filmmaking with Life, Above All, which was shortlisted for this year’s best foreign language Oscar. Still, his international reputation largely rests on Mapantsula, which is probably best appreciated within the context of a retrospective like United We Stand. Mogotlane vividly brings Panic to life as a flesh-and-blood individual (albeit a decidedly problematic one) and the funky soundtrack by the Ouens adds a considerable spark. However, certain sequences do not hold together well, particularly during Panic’s interrogations. As a grim depiction of humanity, Mapantsula is certainly representative of dissident South African cinema of the Apartheid era. It screens today (4/7) and Sunday (4/10) as the United retrospective begins at the Anthology Film Archives.