terrible... so disappointed.

not as good as all the hype

Absolutely the worst movie.

A waste of 90 minutes of my life

Released in the year before the process of ending apartheid began, A DRY WHITE SEASON offers a straightforward portrayal of life, with the Afrikaaners depicted as almost uniformly racist and the black Africans as their largely innocent victims. The only people straddling this racial and ideological divide are history teacher Ben du Toit (Donald Sutherland) and his young son Johan (Rowen Elmes). At the beginning of the film we see du Toit, a former Springbok rugby union player, happily presiding over his learners at his all-white private school. It is only when he learns of the brutal way in which his African gardener Gordon Ngubene (Winston Ntshona) has been murdered by the authorities that his hitherto fixed beliefs in Afrikaaner supremacy are challenged. After an abortive court case charging the police with brutality, du Toit determines to pursue justice at any cost, even at the cost of his family life.The plot is a familiar one with resonances far beyond the immediate South African context. It could prove equally plausible in an historical drama about the anticommunist era in the United States. We roughly know what will happen in the end, but there are some noteworthy moments along the way, especially Marlon Brando's star turn as a campaigning lawyer where he rehearses his British English accent (previously shown off in the remake of MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY (1962).Most of the supporting roles are played by British actors speaking a peculiarly nasal form of Afrikaaner English, including Richard Wilson, Ronald Pickup, Paul Brooke and a youthful Susannah Harker (in a pre- HOUSE OF CARDS role). Perhaps the ruling Afrikaaner oligarchy intervened, but the film would have appeared more historically authentic if more locally employed actors had been cast. Nonetheless the black Africans are all played by locals, who are given the chance to speak Bantu as well as English in the film. Susan Sarandon appears briefly as a British journalist, but she doesn't have to do much.A DRY WHITE SEASON looks a bit anachronistic now, but its sincerity of purpose cannot be doubted.

For many years the government of South Africa carried on it's secret, grizzly business of imprisonment, torture and murder. Hundreds and then thousands of black South Africans were detained, arrested, beaten to death causing the numerous unofficial grave sites to overflow. Until then, many whites of South Africa either ignored their murderous brethren's brutalities or feigned ignorance of the atrocities. "A Dry White Season" rips deeply into the social fabric of both white myths, that proclaimed the enemy consisted of Black terrorists and anarchistic communists and the notion every white Africanier knew what was taking place and turned their heads. One family patriarch, Ben Du Toit (pronouched Toy) Donald Sutherland realizes he and his sanitized life style is to blame when a black Gardner and his son are both arrested and murdered without anyone caring. In order to get the government to change, he must challenge the Police Security Forces, or 'Special Branch' and it's formidable figurehead, Captain Stolz (Jürgen Prochnow, who is convincing as the menace behind the murderers). Marlon Brando is curiously interesting as Ian McKenzie as a sympathetic lawyer. Winston Ntshona is Gordon Ngubene a courageous national unafraid of anything except failure. All in all, a great film which needs to be seen by anyone who cares. ****

This is a wonderful film, superbly acted by a great cast. Everyone is very understated, despite the understandable possibilities of over-acting. Donald Sutherland, Marlon Brando and the little boy are particularly outstanding - but one would really need to list all of the cast! The story shows the courage needed to stand up against the pressure of society when one (somewhat belatedly in our hero's case) discovers the injustices that are daily committed. While there is a lot of blood and gore, for once it simply reflects the situation. The Marlon Brando character is certainly wonderfully acted; his accent was so British it took us quite a little while to recognised him, despite his fairly unmistakable appearance! - we were watching this on television, knowing only that it took place in South Africa. My compliments to all involved!

Apartheid gripped South Africa for many years. One heard the news with total disbelief, as things got worse in that country. Euzhan Palcy has brought Andre Brink's novel to the screen making a statement along the way about what was wrong in South Africa under the brutal repression of those that dared to make a stand.The carnage one sees in the film is hard to take. Especially, since one occurrence is directed to innocent children who are trying to make a stand about education. At the time, the white establishment labeled communist all those that dared oppose the ruling class. It's ironic that after things got to be democratic, those same rebels didn't turn the country into a communist state.The story centers on a white teacher that suddenly awakens to what is happening around him. His involvement comes through his gardener, Gordon, who is a decent man. When the gardener's son is arrested, Gordon turns to Ben for help. That will mark the beginning of Ben's passive attitude toward apartheid. By trying to help, Ben will be a marked man, a traitor to his people, according to even his own family.Donald Sutherland makes an excellent Ben, the former football star and teacher. We watch him as he gets deeply involved in his quest for justice in a land where it was unknown. Zakes Mokae, an immensely talented actor of stage and screen, plays Stanley the man that serves as a link between the struggling faction and Ben. Jurgen Prochnow plays the sadistic Capt. Stolz conveying all the cruelty and arrogance of the man. Janet Suzman is Ben's wife, a woman who doesn't want to see any changes in her cushy life.The surprise of the film is the appearance of Marlon Brando in a small, but pivotal role of Ian McKenzie, a barrister that brings the case to a court of justice, but it's defeated by the system. Mr. Brando made a tremendous contribution to the film.Ms. Palcy's film is a reminder of the injustice perpetuated in South Africa under the apartheid rule.