Goodbye Bafana on DVD (2007)

Matt Raubenheimer from South Africa [Highly rated reviewer] , 27/09/2007

I found this film to be a very enjoyable piece, showing something of the history of South Africa. Even if Mandela wasn't a character in the film it would be interesting as a study of the changes in South Africa, both political and social, which took place between the sixties and 1990 when Mandela was released. The whole piece feels very South African to me (I am South African by the way!) Unlike the previous reviewer I found all the accents believable as they were similair to people which I know! Also, uses of words like mall. . . well my friends and I all use the word mall quite frequently so I don't see any problem with that myself.

Although most people will see the film thinking it is a film about Mandela himself, it isn't actually so. It is more about the journey taken by James Gregory, played by Joseph Fiennes. Mandela is a major character, of course, and I think he was well played by Dennis Haysbert, although I found his grey hairpiece at the end of the film entirely unconvincing!

All in all, a good film, and one I'll definitely be buying when it comes out on DVD. . .

  42 out of 42 people found this review helpful

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A customer from North London , 24/05/2007

Having watched the trailer to this movie, I cringed at the South African accents, but decided to see this movie, despite that flaw. I lived in South Africa for many years, so it was like revisiting it all over again.

My family and I lived next to the airforce building that was blown up by the ANC and I knew people that died in the blast, so I was curious to see the movie for that very reason. I really liked the movie, however what I felt spoiled it for me was the fact that one could tell it had been Americanised. The South African accents had been softened even by real South African actors in the movie that I recognised. Gregory's wife (Diane Kruger) just couldn't get the accent right, sometimes she mustered a very light accent other times she slipped into an american accent halfway through her lines. On top of that she referred to a shopping centre as a mall which is a term we would never use in SA, as it is an american term. The actor that played Mandela was too tall and bulky to be a believable Mandela. The film had a strong story to tell and it is a shame that it felt so amateurishly put together. It lacked thought and authenticity. Never the less I enjoyed watching the film, but it could've been so much better!

  35 out of 46 people found this review helpful

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ronny vidot from Brentford [Highly rated reviewer] , 08/12/2007

very dull film powerful stroy with no emotion and weak acting and filming.Overall lack details as what is happening to mandela and is telling 27 years in 1 and half hour so forcing you to adjust to the story quickly hence you do not get to know the chracter and will find it very hard to symphatise for them e.g boy is 8 and 5 mins later he s 18 .

  28 out of 32 people found this review helpful

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A customer from England , 16/11/2007

'Goodbye Bafana' is a film everyone should watch as it portrays s part of Nelson Mandela's life and subsequent imprisonment which changed the coarse of history for black people in Africa and is an unforgettable story.

  14 out of 14 people found this review helpful

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pixie [Highly rated reviewer] , 10/01/2008

Goodbye Bafana is a great film about the relationship between a prison guard and Nelson Mandela when he was imprisoned on Robbin Island.

It spans 3 decades of apartheid in South Africa and it was very real, I lived in South Africa in the 1970's and I could relate to the whole film, even the houses and the decor were true to life.

The film shows how the prison guard starts off hating Mandela but eventually started to see what he was about.

Lovely film, brilliant bit of history as well

  4 out of 4 people found this review helpful

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A customer from southampton , 16/01/2008

just focused on very poor dialogue and incorrect history to produce a dire unwatchable film

  3 out of 3 people found this review helpful

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