Film Review: Catch a Fire (2006)
In the years following 9/11, as carnage in Iraq and rampant human rights abuses came to light, people began to question certain official truths about the Global War on Terror. Film-makers could no longer ignore these issues, and a number of films emerged that critiqued or rejected the entire concept. One of the first among these was "Catch a Fire," a 2006 biopic directed by Phillip Noyce.
The script for "Catch a Fire" was written by Shawn Slovo, daughter of Joe Slovo and Ruth First, leaders of the South African Communist Party whose characters briefly appear in the film. The plot begins in 1980 South Africa, under the oppressive rule of the white minority apartheid regime. The protagonist, played by Derek Luke, is Patrick Chamusso, a black worker at the Secunda coal liquefaction plant who keeps his distance from politics, determined to provide decent life to his family. Everything changes after he is wrongfully arrested for a sabotage incident at the plant. He gets released, but not before being tortured by security police inspector Nick Vos (played by Tim Robbins), and seeing his wife Precious (played by Bonnie Mbuli). Patrick becomes radicalized and joins uMkhonto weSizwe, the armed wing of the African National Congress. After receiving training in Mozambique he returns in order to bomb the plant. Patrick mission ultimately and is sentenced to 24 years in prison. Upon release when apartheid ends, he consciously decides not to seek revenge on his former tormentor.
The anti-apartheid movement led by Nelson Mandela is often hailed as a success story and a noble example of revolutionary change achieved peacefully. However, many forget that Mandela's followers during the struggle were deemed terrorists not only by the apartheid regime but also by US and other Western governments. The phrase "one man's freedom fighter is another man's terrorist" could be applied here, and Patrick Chamusso's story serves as an allegory for later events in prison cells and torture chambers of Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo.
While clearly pointing out that the apartheid that ANC radicals were on the right side of history, and Afrikaner-dominated security apparatus was wrong, Catch a Fire avoids preachiness. Noyce refrains from one-dimensional characterization; Nic Vos is portrayed as an intelligent and perceptive foe who wants to protect his country from Soviet-backed anti-apartheid militants. Ironically, it is his actions that turn Chamusso into the very danger to the regime he sought to prevent, something very familiar to those following various political and cultural trends in Middle East and other areas affected by Global War on Terror.
As a director with success in Hollywood action and thriller films, Noyce shows some of those genre-related skills in Catch a Fire, although such scenes are limited by the constraints of the true story. The film's bitter tone is evident throughout, and the post-apartheid epilogue, which sees Chamusso finding forgiveness for his tormentor, appears as a somewhat cheap attempt to end the film on a happy note.
Catch a Fire benefits greatly from its strong cast, although Derek Luke gets overshadowed by Tim Robbins' sinister portrayal of Nic Vos. While the film has its shortcomings, it offers a compelling and thought-provoking exploration of the human cost of political conflict and the complexities of the anti-apartheid struggle.
RATING: 6/10 (++)
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