The Island with the LONG NAME-Loyalty

After Tsotsi encounters the baby his priorities change and he informs Butcher and Aap that he does not want to be part of the gang anymore. Later Aap returns by himself displaying his loyalty to Tsotsi.

The camera angles support the theme of loyalty by using level point of view shots to show equality between Tsotsi and Aap in the scene. For the first time int he film Aap is not Tsotsi's inferior. He comes to Tsotsi as a friend and not as just a member of the gang.

Their costumes in the scene emphasises Aap's loyalty to Tsotsi even though Tsotsi's clothing is constantly changing. Tsotsi is wearing a vest opposed to his usual leather jacket, where as loyal Aap remains in his blue over-alls.

Jarred van Rooyen, Phillip Demetriou, George Bourdos, Herman Hoogenboezem, Keagan Leamy, James Hosken

Zoltan Island's theme discussion

The scene starts with a camera angle that looks down on Pumla and the father. There baby was stolen by Tsotsi and she was shot so this camera angle makes us feel how venerable they are, it also makes us feel sympathetic towards them. Later on in the scene when the father is talking to the inspectors a similar angle is used, as we are looking from the inspectors down on Pumla this shows how powerless she is in the situation. When she does wake up there is immediately a camera shot that is below eye level and is focused on her, this helps express her anger and hatred towards Tsotsi.

It was apparent that the detectives where intimidated by Pumla and where ashamed that they could do little to help the couple as the chances of finding the baby was slim. The detectives are not very excited and do not appear as if they are able to cope with the responsibility of the case as they know what the chances are of success are.

The lighting in the room is quite bright as it normally is in a hospital. This light does not bring about a warm feeling, which is used to emphases the low chances of the return of her baby.

Pumla is wearing a theatre gown this is also used to show how helpless she is.

Ninja Pandaz
Theme of Love:
Final Scene – time to put things right

Setting:

• He is back at the baby's actual home; this shows he cares and knows the baby will do better there than in the townships.
• He holds the baby as if it belongs to him. He does not want to return it as he has found love for him.

Costuming:

• Tsotsi is no longer wearing the black, sad, colours from all the previous scenes. It shows us that he has developed in to a light hearted more loving character.
• The black costume worn in the other scenes is a sign of crime and/or violence. The white shows a sign of surrender to the old life.

Type of shot and shot composition:

• The close up his face when the baby cries shows us a sign of worrying for the crying child; he turns back to help the baby.
• When handing the baby the camera shows us he is nervous. It shows his tears. He does not want to let the little one go. His love for him is too strong.

Lighting and colour:

• The bulk of the light is cast upon Tsotsi and the baby. They are the centre stage of the scene. It shows the first place where they came together (not met) and also the last (of what we know) of their short relationship.
• The dark background shows us where he has come from. He is no longer in hiding and has come into reconciliation for the first time since the death of his beloved dog. His love for the baby changed his personality.

• Hwan
• Reghardt
• Sam
• David-Hein
• Devin

Manhattan - Theme

Group: Manhattan
Theme: Life is a gamble.

Opening scene

Camera movements and angles

The scene opens with a fade-in, fade-out technique on the dice. The effect is quite chaotic. The viewer struggles to make out the characters and who is saying what. This emphasises the idea of life being a gamble - you never know what is going to happen. A view expansion shot is taken where the camera zooms out. There is a close-up shot of the dice followed by view of the room and then followed by a bird’s-eye view shot of the township. The camera tracks Tsotsi around the township – he is the leader.

Costuming and lighting
Tsotsi’s friends are wearing jackets and their outfit is layered. Tsotsi, however, is wearing a red shirt with pants. The combination is very simple. The general colour in the scene is a darkish brown. This makes Tsotsi, with his red shirt, stand out. One questions how they afford these clothes. A gamble, maybe? The only light in the room (natural lighting) comes from a window – the morning sun.

Characterization
In the opening scene Tsotsi is standing slightly apart from the others. He is refusing to join the gambling. Maybe he is already questioning his life – is his life really a gamble? What can he do to prevent himself from dying or living based on the roll of dice – based on luck? He is already trying to come to terms with his past and accept it as something he can do nothing about. His destiny sets him apart from the others – he will chose to live a life without the risks involved in a gamble.

THE GLAVES. task3 'Tsotsi'

The theme that we have chosen to evaluate is reconciliation; this theme is most evident in the scene when Tsotsi is making amends with Boston, the ‘friend’ that he beat up at the bar after a controversial confrontation.
Characterization
· In this scene we have Tsotsi and Boston, the two are having a dialogue, and here Tsotsi apologizes to Boston.
Camera movements and angles
· The opening of this scene shows Tsotsi putting down his gun- this could be viewed that he is surrendering. He is opening himself up to Boston.
· The close-ups on both their faces show the viewer the emotions that are actually being portrayed by both Tsotsi and Boston.
· The horizontal angle that is shown between the two men is to indicate that both of them are set on the same level, there is no longer that dominance that Tsotsi usually has over him(Boston)
Setting
· The scene is set inside Tsotsi’s home, where he has invited Boston to stay- this could be said that this act insinuated that Tsotsi would like to make amends.
· Another intrigue is that Boston is sleeping on Tsotsi’s bed! This shows that Tsotsi is truly apologetic; he even went as far as to place Boston in his own personal space.
Index
· The indexical object in the scene is the candle. This is an index of Tsotsi’s ‘good’ side; a candle is a typical way of showing the positive side of people. In this scene it was so. The fact that he was apologizing hence the inclusion of the candle.
Lighting
· This scene had no artificial colour; it was all natural- the candle and the sun rays peeking through the room. The dark mood makes the scene more somber, the effect of an apology is intensified.
· The darkness also makes the scene more personal and intimate. The reconciliation feels more genuine- the mood created by the light (lack of) makes it that way.
Composition
· The horizontal angle that is shown between the two men is to indicate that both of them are set on the same level; there is no longer that dominance that Tsotsi usually has over him (Boston). Horizontal lines are also restful and peaceful.

Mandisi Mzenze
Mark Tollet
Bame Nkate
Nipho Matsane
Nkanyiso Tshwete
Shaun daFonseca

Task 3: The theme of decency shown by Tsotsi in the film

In the movie "Tsotsi" one of the main scenes that stuck in our minds when trying to figure out where Tsotsi best showed the theme of decency was when Tsotsi had offered to care for boston and invited Boston back to his house.

Our group found many ways in which the director had used filming techniques in this scene in order to maximise the theme of decency. First we discussed the camera angles in the scene and the main camera angle was a lown angle shot on Tsotsi and a high angle shot on Boston lying in the bed. This shows that Tsotsi is in control seeming bigger and more powerful than Boston but he shows decency by caring for Boston in his weakened state.

The second filming technique we discussed was the lighting of the scene. Tsotsi lights one candle in the room making the lighting very soft simbolising peace between the two in the scene.

Thirdly we discussed the costuming in the scene and both characters are dressed in very simple clothing making them equals in the scene. Neither of the two are better dressed making one or the other seem more important in the scene.

Finally we discussed the soundtrack in the scene which is all natural sounds in the scene. This helps make the scene more tranquil again emphasising the peace between the two characters.

The decency showed by Tsotsi in this scene is that of equality and how he transforms from this brutal gang leader to a person who is able to care for another and offer shelter to his friends. The message of decency strongly shines through when he places the gun down on the stool and wakes Boston up to apologise for what he did. This final act in the scene shows how much Tsotsi has developed into something resembling a decent person.

Done by: Beta House

theme: violence

The only really violent scene in the movie takes place quite early on. The mugging-cum-murder scene on the metro is one of the only scenes that displays real violence and almost establishes the heirarchy of the gang members and shows their characters to audience.

Tsotsi is clearly the leader, scouting for and singling out their target. Aap is more for muscle than anything else and Butcher does all the dirty work. Boston's role is unclear and he seems slightly nervous throughout.

A tracking, point of view shot creates tension as they follow their target to the train. The man seems, by his dress, to be of middle class while Tsotsi's gang are deceivingly well dressed in dark, menacing clothes, besides Aap who is dressed, as usual, in his overalls.

Short, stationary, intense close-ups increase tension as surround the man. A lingering overhead shot of the metro interior exaggerates the perceived normalcy of the situation and accentuates the contrast between victim and oblivious crowd. The absence of non-synchronous sound adds to this.

There is a distinct lack of dialogue with only the rattling and rumbling of the train in the background. The sharpened bicycle spoke, the murder weapon, becomes an index of Butcher's crude, violent nature.

The scene ends almost akwardly as they calmly leave the train last with the body lying in the middle of the carriage. It almost seems like an everyday occurance.

Baldrick:
Jo Balmer
Grant Hutchison
Garth Engelbrecht
Maverick van der Walt
Johan van der Westhuisen
Alex Schorr

Task 3---> Themes: Poverty

*We chose to use the scene in which Tsotsi follows the old man in the wheelchair to the open space under the bridge.

Characterization:

The old man presents himself as being overtly confident and unafraid, while he is in fact completely at the mercy of Tsotsi's better judgement. The man uses this mask of false confidence to compensate for the fear he is experiencing at the prospect of being robbed or killed. The theme of poverty is evident in the fact that the man has no home to keep him safe, and is therefore at the mercy of not only the elements, but also the night-life of his chosen area of temporary residence. The fact that he is poor has thus forced him to adopt a different, fiercer, character than he might have had if he was not poor and disabled. Tsotsi also has an apparent motive to rob the old man, because he himself is perceived to be poor by the way he dresses and where he lives.

Setting:

The setting of the scene is under a bridge in an area that looks largely uninhabited and, more importantly, uninhabitable. This shows us that the man has reached such a level of poverty that he now has to either find a new, temporary, residence every night of his life, or that he returns to this same place because he has found it to be safe enough. The desolate setting also indicates that no one that did not have extreme need would be at this location at that time of night.

Costuming:

The old man is dressed in what looks like ragged clothing, generally worn by people who do not have much else to wear. His clothes are black, and this creates a sense that they may be dirty and unwashed. Tsotsi's costume is also dark, and unremarkable. The combination of these colours brings forth the theme of poverty quite well.

A pearl of wisdom from the incredible islet that is...Sparzibar

Reconciliation

Reconciliation

Tsotsi apologises to Boston and offers Boston to stay at his house as a condolence to what happened at the bar when Tsotsi beat him up.
Tsotsis character is beginning to change as he apologises to Boston and shows some decency. And that night when Tsotsi speaks to him privately, Tsotsi puts his gun down facing way from Boston. The room is lit by a single candle with a small flame which represents that there is some hope/light shining through Tsotsi.
The type of camera shot used is a close up on Tsotsi and Bostons faces, clearly showing their feelings and expressions.
Soundtrack: the music wasn’t the usual ‘kwaito’ tracks played through the rest of the movie but rather calm and slow.

Mhakunana island

Haiku's are easy...
But sometimes they don't make sense.
Refrigerator!

International Studies Tour to China

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. Well, if this is the case then not even a thousand pictures could begin to describe the experiences, emotions and ecstasies that we all had and felt on the International Studies Tour to China 2009. And yet, here I am, tasked with portraying to you all these things and more in less than a thousand words. Incredible, amazing, flabbergasting, astounding, impressive and magbloodynificent are some of the words that spring to mind. But so are scary, polluted, dangerous and horrifying. If I had to rate the tour on a scale of 1 to 10 I would say both 23 and -17, because it was just utterly awesome and terrifying at the same time. It would take me all week to explain in detail everything that happened, so instead I will give a brief report on some of the highlights (and lowlights) of the tour.

Beijing
On the first day in Beijing we learned quite a lot about the city and China, for example the colloquial word for toilet is 'happy house' (which poses a few questions), the Bird's Nest Stadium is having financial difficulties and although there is little visible litter on the streets, the air is so polluted that it brought tears to many an eye. We also went to see the Bird's Nest Stadium (which is very big) and the Watercube (ditto), and finally we had a lunch in a traditional Chinese restaurant. The thing about Chinese restaurants is that while you have to pay out of your nose for water, the pot of green tea is endlessly replenished. And while there is no menu that you can choose from, you don't need one as they bring you everything that would have been on it anyway. The Lazy Susan in the middle of the table was eventually crammed with meat (named and unnamed), veggies, rice, fruit, tofu, sauces, a selection of soups, noodles, eggs (?), something that looked suspiciously like bread, dumplings (which were like heaven on a plate), some sort of squishy things (which were pointedly not like heaven on a plate), empty water glasses and a teapot that was full of tea. We were then led back to our hotel which was a very fancy but friendly place that (to the absolute delight of many) was delivered to by McDonalds. On the second day we learnt many more new and wonderful things about the place, such as in China, if one is approached by a young woman in a rather inadequate amount of clothing (that is quite... revealing), who claims to be a preschool teacher in need of English lessons, one should definitely recede from the situation as rapidly as possible. We visited lots of places including Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City (where, in true College fashion we struck up a war cry - 16 bullets), after which we went to the Hutongs on traditional rickshaws and had dinner with the local people there. Throughout the rest of out stay we saw many more amazing things, including an extraordinary acrobatic performance, the Capital museum and a Chinese flight museum, as well as visiting two very highly regarded schools in Beijing and the Tshinghua University (which was unfortunately disappointing due to the fact that we couldn't actually see anything that went on there). But to many, one of the best experiences in Beijing was visiting the Great Wall of China itself. At the section that we went to we had one of two options; the easy was up or the hard way up. We opted for the easy way, until we saw that the entire population of southern Asia had done the same and thus (no jokes here) completely blocked the whole wall for as far as we could see. So we took the hard way up. It’s strange that it was called ‘the hard way up’, because I would have called it the ‘nigh on impossible way up’. Eventually, hot and sweaty, we arrived at a section quiet enough to get the lectures over and done with. After hiking up the Great Wall I now realise that the Mongols attacked the Wall so many times not to invade China, but just to laugh at the Chinese while they panted their way to their posts. After a quick look around a Jade workshop it was onto the bullet train and off to Shanghai.

Zhangziagang
Don't try to pronounce it - you will get it wrong. We went to a steel mill, and we were given a banquet by some very important people. We visited a school and played a bit of sport against them. These are the facts. There is not much else I can say about this part of the tour except that for many it was definitely the best. This was the part of the tour where we would spend three nights in a host family's house, and although many were at first sceptical about spending three nights in a complete stranger's house with parents who we had been assured would not be able to speak a word of English, everything turned out very well in the end and the strangers had all turned into our friends. I cannot begin to explain the bond of friendship that so many people made over the three days, suffice to say that I thought it impossible for people to get to know each other so well in such a short period of time. As we left the group of schoolchildren who had made such an impact on our lives behind, there was definitely an air of sadness and sorrow. Sechaba Lengane summed it all up pretty well on the silent bus with these words "Sho guys, that was the hardest goodbye I've ever said."

Shanghai
Our schedule for Shanghai was less packed than the Beijing one, but just as enjoyable. With trips to the Oriental Pearl, markets, museums and places of worship the stay in Shanghai looked to be like a joll. And it certainly was, as during their free time people visited places ranging from the Shanghai World Financial centre to the track where the Shanghai Grand Prix was held. After learning that a massage parlour in China is, no matter how upper class in appearance, still dodgy on the inside, and that staying up until two in the morning is both silly and punishable, we left Shanghai and departed to Hong Kong.

Hong Kong/Macao
We could all feel it. Although we were happy to get to a place that had some Western resemblance, we all knew that Hong Kong signified the closing stages of the tour. I had mixed feeling at this stage, with part of me willing to go home and get some rest, and another part of me wanting to stay on for a lot longer. Anyway, it was with both anticipation and dread that we faced the closing stages of the tour, and even though the end seemed so close, it was actually quite a long way off. The schedule for Hong Kong included visiting yet more markets, the Tian Tan Buddha and Po Lin Monastery, a day in Macao and a full free day in Hong Kong. In Macao we were hosted by an old boy of the College who lives there, and we saw such places as a Portuguese fortress, the Lotus Flower casino, the Venetian (in which Stefan got terribly lost) and, wait for it, a market. At the end of the day we were given the opportunity to stay behind to see the Cirque Du Soleil (which was really excellent), but only five of us did. During the free day in Hong Kong, most went to Ocean Park, but they said that it was a bit disappointing as many of the rides were closed. Myself? I had no money left so I wandered around with Lefika until we found a public library to cheer us up. We were subsequently kicked out for not having our ID documents on us.

Epilogue
I think that it’s safe to say that on the last day in Hong Kong nobody was loathe to go back home, as we had all had quite enough of China, and it was definitely time to get back to biltong en braais. However...
During the 13 hour flight back to Johannesburg I was given time to reflect on what had just happened. Two weeks had flown by, even though it seemed like an eternity since I had gotten on to the flight from Jo'burg to Hong Kong. And in those two weeks I had (amongst other things) shouted warcries in the Forbidden City, learned about glow in the dark paint on the Great Wall, made many friends, stood on the top floor of the tallest building in the world, been into the 3rd tallest tower in the world, drunk about 2000 litres of green tea, purchased a crash helmet (long story), been vomited on (another long story - better if you don't ask), seen arguably the best circus in the world, run out of money and finally been kicked out of a library for being illegal. And do you know what? I began to miss it right there and then.

James Hosken

There, Their or They’re?

Irony at its best

Ninety people get the Swine Flu and everybody wants to wear a mask. Millions of people have AIDS and no one wants to wear a condom.

Tsotsi director

Check out this link

http://www.superherohype.com/news/x-mennews.php?id=8286

for an interview with Gavin Hood, who directed Tsotsi and has just directed that new Wolverine movie...