MAPANTSULA

Shot in Johannesburg and Soweto semi-covertly under the guise of a routine gangster movie, MAPANTSULA (Thief) tells the Black South Africans' story from the Black perspective, at last. The story centers on a petty thief nicknamed Panic, who is so self-absorbed that he ignores the political eruptions going on around him. Perfectly content with his township life, Panic spends his days dancing and boozing, messing up the lives of those who love him and those who want him to join in the freedom struggle. Cutting back and forth from Panic's street life to his time in prison, the film keeps us from guessing the reasons for his arrest until the dynamic end. Panic's political awakening is achieved without propagandizing, and culminates in an electric moment of triumph.