Part of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s mission is to foster greater understanding through world cinema. This year 72 Foreign Language films were submitted for Golden Globes consideration. Here is an overview of one of them..

Thina Sobabili: The Two of Us, is a raw film, shot in a mere seven days in Alexandria, one of the historic townships in South Africa. Character driven and financed on a shoestring budget, it tells an epic story of the lengths to which people will go to protect those they love. The central character appears to be a tightly wound brutal thug who feeds off the rich through robbery – stopping short of murder. He is fiercely protective of his younger sister who lives with him in a rudimentary shack, common in the sprawl of African shantytowns. His pride in her education and intelligence is countered by his stilted emotions and his fierce determination to hold her to a higher standard than the life he has to live. She smarts beneath his tough love and like many young girls in the impoverished shantytowns that fester and flourish across Africa, is tempted by the glamour and escape that an older stranger seems to offer; possibly trading youth for opportunity. Many themes and multiple stories are interwoven, mining the psychological impact of childhood, first love, revenge, poverty and the abuse of women in a patriarchal society.

The vibrant township life is captured, often incorporating bystanders instead of extras. And there are some haunting scenes, in particular one played by Idris Elba look-alike, Richard Lukunku, (Black Sails, Strike Back) and Zikhona Sodlaka, that will have you squirming and wanting to look away even as you are compelled to watch it unfold.

Four years in the making, written in Zulu, Thina Sobabili: The Two of Us incorporates a variety of languages that make up the multiethnic township cacophony. Winner of the Audience Award at the 2015 Pan African Film Festival (organized by Danny Glover in LA), the ADIFF in New York, and the Jozi Film Festival, Thina Sobabili: The Two of Us was directed by Ernest Nkosi who also co-wrote the script with Mosibudi Pheeha, the film showcases multi-layered performances by Busisiwe Mtshali, Emmanuel Nkosinathi Gweva, Mpho Modikoane, and Thato Dhladla.

Margaret Gardiner