Film Review: Catch a Fire

Director Phillip Noyce’s film picks up the real life story of Patrick Chamusso (Derek Luke) from his roots as an apolitical oil plant foreman in South Africa's Secunda refinery, to his enrolment as a freedom fighter in the ANC, dogged by terrorist-obsessed intelligence officer, Nic Vos (Tim Robins).

As a biographical film, Catch a Fire has very “dramatised- documentary” feel to it. Primarily this solves the problem of creating a cohesive cinematic presentation of a subject that is typified by fragmentation. With such a concern for historical accuracy Vos and Patrick are objectively viewed under the same shadow of apartheid. Noyce’s focus on the psychology and politics of racial segregation also helps here, and presents what many will find a refreshing perspective on such a notorious period of history. Only at times does racism appear as a factor, and racist slurs such “cheeky kafir” are relatively absent. More important to the film is the paranoia of the white officials, filled with fear of not only the overwhelming majority of blacks in South Africa but also the influence of communistm on the ANC; propelled by a white pioneer spirit and the claim to a land taken back from the British during the Boer war.

Those of you interested in fact rather than drama (i.e those of you who understandably hate Mel Gibson movies) will love Catch a Fire. However, this documentary feel in not unproblematic. At times the film can be somewhat disengaging and whilst Shawn Slovo’s script gives the film much scope for emotional resonance, Noyce’s direction fails to bring this to the forefront of the movie. As such it is hard to always sympathise with Patrick: His assimilation into the ANC appearing too close a justification of the paranoia that instigated his original arrest.

It's clear that a distinct process is being hinted at here: heavy-handed and racially motivated police states, ultimately cause the same terrorism they attempt to prevent. The idea is relevant today and as such something that should be more explicit in the film. Unfortunately Catch a Fire is more often than not, inert, and much of the dramatic tension soley comes from the cat-and-mouse game of the film's final act. Only the appearance of the real-life Chamusso at the end of the film, provides the emotional impact the film deserves.