Review of The Bang Bang Club (2011) by Philip C — 14 Sep 2011

The Bang Bang Club tells the true story of combat photographers during events that occurred after Apartheid in South Africa. I liked this movie on most levels and on others I'm walking away disappointed.

The performances are good. The director has assembled what I believe some of the best young talent I've seen in a long while. Ryan Phillippe is great and he continues to churn out movies that should make anyone take notice that he is a serious actor.

The movie opens up at an exciting pace and tends to meander in the middle before picking up speed again. As I was watching this, I couldn't help but think something was missing. It's as if parts of the script were rewritten without taking into account what was written in the first act or the third act. Things just didn't seem to mesh together.

If you're looking for a film to give a historical lesson on the Apartheid, this isn't it either. I was hoping for a little bit more about the Apartheid and it seemed as if the filmmakers and the writers simply used it as a backdrop, with no real connection to the combat photographers. It was disconcerting to me.

Despite these factors, The Bang Bang Club is a good movie that could have been great. It's worth a viewing and I don't think you'll be disappointed, but be prepared, it is violent and at times graphic. Photographers will especially enjoy the focus on photography.