Customer Reviews

The Wooden Camera

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In the first few minutes of this South African film two young teenage friends discover a dead body with a huge pistol and a video camera. The shy introvert Madiba chooses the camera, while cocky Sipho takes the gun. The film explores the consequences of those choices. Madiba hides the VCR in a home-made wooden camera, enabling him to shoot everyone and anything on the sly. He experiments with the aesthetic, technical and voyeuristic aspects of film-making. Refracting light with different lenses, candles, floating plastic bags, and even the bubbles of a drink awaken his artistic bent. His cinematic creations form a significant portion of the film. "Some day," he hopes, "my pictures will hang in houses." Sipho's gun awakens in him foolish bravado, and we watch him descend to petty crime, drugs, gangs and finally horrible tragedy. Between them both is an improbable, budding romance between Madiba and a rebellious white girl, Estelle, from a wealthy family with racist secrets of their own. This film is good, not great, but well worth watching for its themes of adolescence, choices, fate, friendship, and racism in a post-apartheid township of Cape Town.

Wooden Box is a tale of friendship between children of different South African social classes. It's reminicent of a Brazilian slum movie, but with aspects of the ills of society (racism) A good unknown cast of young actors helps the movie.

I loved that the plot was absolutely unpredictable and flowed through the eyes of youth who envision hope and possibilities in this world of mazed impossibilities. It is a journey into again the human condition without solution only the potential for change which is precisely where we are.

I saw this movie years ago before I ever knew anything about South Africa or that I would some day call it home. I would highly recommend renting it! It is a simple film but tells a strong story about friendship, the frailty of life and the impact of the choices we make. The film also touches on issues of racial identity and prejudice. Rent or buy it is worth it. At the least your may learn something new!

what a great movie anbout two boys who find a camera and a gun and how things change for them. the opening scene when they show the township as the boys walikng home after finding the camera is just awesome.

I picked this film up at Blockbuster for $3.99. This was a great little film about 2 boys from the shanty towns of South Africa and their chance encounter to a murdered man being thrown from a train. They find the mans gun and video camera and each boy takes home his choosen prize. Each boy unknowingly chooses his destiny thru the use of their finds. I found this film very moving and the characters really sweet and full of the innoscense of growing up and learning that the choices we make effect us for ever. This gave me the simular feeling I had when I watched Central Station, a wonderful film from Brazil, about a small boy who sets out and searches for his father after his mother is killed.

You really should see these films. The Wooden Camera is a gem......

The Wooden Camera is about the path two young teens take as a result of finding a camera and a gun. Best friends, Madiba and Sipho live in Cape Town South Africa and find the items on a dead body thrown from a train. Madiba finds the wooden camera and Sipho takes the gun. They advance into their own worlds, capturing film on video and a life of crime. Madiba is befriended by a white young rebellious teen, Estelle, who lives a world apart from the slums the boys came from. Estelle has a racist father, but she remains rebellious to that idea.

The role that the racist father exhibits seems like it just didn't fit in the film. With so little mentioned, it didn't seem important to the film. It was just too cut and dried without any development to the role pertinent to the storyline. You get a good idea of the wealthy versus the poor and the images are powerful.

The film is not exactly challenging, rather more predictable, and has won a few awards. .....Rizzo

Please don't waste your money. I couldn't figure out where the plot was headed. I got halfway through and got a phone call and never watched the rest of it. It was boring with a capital 'B'. I still never started it over and watched the whole thing after that phone call. I gave it 2 stars: one for having the guts to make this movie, and the other for filming it in Africa.