Memorable, crazy movie

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

This film is without a doubt the most shocking film I have ever seen. It's difficult to say just how the writer/director came about doing this film but a couple of things come to mind. I could not help think of the way Hitchcock would prepare the viewer for a shocking scene by almost lulling the viewer to sleep so that when the big scene takes place you practically jump from your seat and go running for the nearest exit. I'm thinking of Psycho, of course. Here, a virtually identical event takes place and there was no exit for me to run to so I had to stay in my chair and sit out perhaps the most horrific scene I have ever witnessed in a movie or in real life. It is shockingly presented and you sit there frozen thinking to yourself this can't be happening. Everything that happens before the big scene and everything that happens after are completely out of context with the big scene itself and the writer/director has done this precisely the way Hitchcock did it in Psycho. There is an element of abstraction that really hits you hard and you just cannot stop thinking about what you have just seen. In fact, the more I think about this film the more I realize how torn and twisted men are when it comes to lust and the flesh and that the biggest struggle men have is overcoming their sexual desires especially when they are twisted and sick as in this fellow's case. It really is impossible for women to fully grasp just how horrific it is for men in many cases to overcome the flesh and to behave in a humane and decent way. Men are tortured there is no question about it and the man in this film is a perfect example of how wrong a man can go even though on the surface he lives a good life.

This was a great and devastating film. Francois is a man who has repressed his sexuality; he is clearly in a near-loveless, or all the way loveless marriage, as he and his wife don't even seem to bump shoulders while in bed, their nightly discourse about some trivial daytime affairs. Francois some times goes to a house where he meets a bunch of other men around the same age; they drink, carry on a bit, and then they watch gay pornography while everyone engages in some form of sexual behaviour. Yet Francois makes comments about people who are "poofs", and "you never can tell with that type". He is one of many, many people in our world who is repressed beyond words. From the start, it appears he has some sort of fascination with Christian, who calls him Uncle Francois, but is not truly his nephew; we learn throughout that Francois and Christian's father served in the military together, and are old pals. However, Francois has more than an "Uncle"'s love regardless. Slowly, we watch his world dissolve around him until one brutal act suddenly changes everything for him.What I particularly liked was the slow pace because we gradually saw more and more of who Francois was behind the closet doors. There is a scene near the end where Francois dines alone at a restaurant (after taking out a large amount of cash from the bank, which will mean more to you once you've seen the film), and he notices two men who are talking, having a great time, laughing together; soon, they share a nice kiss. Francois is not disgusted in a repressed-type way. The dawning of a new understanding comes upon him; he realizes that is what he could have, he could find happiness if only he didn't bury his true nature deep within himself the way he does. He stares, and you can see Francois realizing that his life could have gone down a different path than where he finds himself; the savage act he perpetrated didn't have to happen. Of course, we know all this, but the realization comes to him near the end. We do not see the ramifications of what he has done, but instead simply there is the progression of Francois; where he started, and where he has ended up. We know what will come for him eventually, or do we? Will anyone ever find out what he has done? Perhaps we'll never know. I give this a 10 out of 10. Wonderful script. Brilliant, and fearless acting (there are some moments that are quite graphic without actually being full-frontal nudity). I can't recommend this enough. Certainly a tough watch at times, but worth it.

I agree largely with ottoman-umpire's comments. Each scene lingered 10-15 seconds longer than necessary. Sometimes less is more, and certainly in this case I felt that throughout the film. Had it been better edited, it could have built the tension more effectively in a decent 60-minute film.That would also have allowed the addition of a more satisfactory ending. When I saw it, you could almost hear every member of the audience saying to themselves "Is that it?" when the film ended - no resolution, no punishment of Francois for what he had done, no indication of what Francois was thinking/feeling as he watched the gay couple at the end, and whether he learned or grew as a result of what happened (i.e. character development). The movie didn't show him to have any redeeming qualities (in my opinion) so in the end I was hoping he would either be punished for the rape or at least come to grips with his homo- or bi-sexuality and do something positive about it.Also, as Christian was a law student, I thought it likely he wouldn't let things rest and would either go to the police or try to blackmail Francois to get the money he wanted (he may have done, but the purpose of the money in the last scene is not stated).All in all, an interesting but frustrating experience.

What an astonishing, sophisticated, insightful movie this is. Superbly written, superbly acted, it's a film that explores with devastating detail one man's experience of the closet and sexual obsession. For Francois van Heerden, the closet was a comfortable place of control and secrecy. The problems started arising when he became obsessed with Christian, his friend's much younger, sublimely beautiful son.Yes, there have been movies about the closet before, but it's still a story worth telling, especially when it's told in this way with such finesse. It's a shame that the real people out there leading desperate, overly controlled lives like Francois will probably never see films like this. In the end, the closet is a desperate horrible place, despite what Francois will tell you.The climax of this movie is an act of brutal rape. Yes, sexual violence occurs in the gay community as well. However, I didn't come away from this movie thinking the director was conflating the closet with sexual violence, or even Afrikaner culture with excessive violence. This is just an account of one man's obsession and act of rape. It's an interesting twist that the man just happens to be a closeted Afrikaner. The movie has a very strong sense of place. To watch this movie is to spend two hours exploring the soul and landscape of modern Afrikaner South Africa. However, at the same time, the movie is quite universal in the themes it explores. This is a hallmark of a fine movie: fascinatingly local and yet telling universal truths.The realism of the movie is striking. This is a movie that shines a laser-like spotlight on an ordinary man, his psychological constructs, and the people hurt by him because of this.The pace of the movie was deliberately slow. At times, we focus on the minutiae of this man's life. This slow-pace technique forces the viewer to wonder what the character was doing and thinking. At times this style worked so well for me that I was shaken (eg the scene near the end when Francois is looking at the happy gay couple). I would dearly love to have known what he was thinking at this point. I desperately wanted this man to see the light, to experience a little redemption. And of course to face justice. But Hermanus and Lotz don't help us with this. In the end we are alone in this inner struggle, as is Francois.There were other times, however, when I found the slow pace, well, a little on the overly slow side. Particularly, the scene where he checked into the hotel. This was the part of the film that worked for me the least. If you enjoy movies with this theme, don't miss this one. It is under-rated on IMDb.com.