Rotten
A queasy mix of high-toned intentions and commercial compromises.
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail
The Bang Bang Club
Sometimes you get too close
2011 · 1h 46m · R
Drama, History
Directed by
Steven Silver
Overview
In the early to mid '90s, when the South African system of apartheid was in its death throes, four photographers - Greg Marinovich, Kevin Carter, Ken Oosterbroek and João Silva - bonded by their friendship and a sense of purpose, worked together to chronicle the violence and upheaval leading up to the 1994 election of Nelson Mandela as president. Their work is risky and dangerous, potentially fatally so, as they thrust themselves into the middle of chaotic clashes between forces backed by the government (including Inkatha Zulu warriors) and those in support of Mandela's African National Congress.
Director and cast
- Steven Silver Director
- Malin Åkerman as Robin Comley
- Ryan Phillippe as Greg Marinovich
- Taylor Kitsch as Kevin Carter
- Frank Rautenbach as Ken Oosterbroek
- Neels Van Jaarsveld as Joao Silva
- Russel Savadier as Ronald Graham
- Ashley Friedlander as Roxy
- Patrick Lyster as James Nachtwey
- Nelson Mandela as Himself
- Lika Berning as Vivian
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
49%
Tomatometer
Rotten
Silver cut his teeth in documentaries and it shows in the skilled on-the-ground style of the camerawork. But visuals are only half the story and the plot doesn't keep up.
Linda Barnard, Toronto Star
Rotten
"The Bang Bang Club" divulges little insight into what keeps this dangerous brotherhood banging away around the world.
Ted Fry, Seattle Times
Fresh
This is one of those relatively rare movies that gets better and smarter as it goes along...
Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com
Rotten
Seldom does "The Bang Bang Club" show much interest in the big picture of South Africa.
Kyle Smith, New York Post
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