FILM REVIEW: Dis Ek, Anna

Marius Weyers and Charlene Brouwer in Dis Ek, Anna

Marius Weyers and Charlene Brouwer in Dis Ek, Anna

Published Oct 23, 2015

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Dis Ek, Anna

DIRECTOR: Sara Blecher

CAST: Charlene Brouwer, Morné Visser, Nicola Hanekom, Izel Bezuidenhout, Marius Weyers, Eduan Van Jaarsveldt, Drikus Volschenk and Hykie Berg

CLASSIFICATION: 16LV

RUNNING TIME: 122 minutes

RATING: 4 stars (out of 5)

Debashine Thangevelo

THIS has been a truly phenomenal year for Sara Blecher. The director once again proves her Midas touch, whether it’s in urban storytelling with Ayanda or in a disquieting drama like Dis Ek, Anna.

Audiences were speechless when this movie was screened at The Durban International Film Festival (DIFF) a few months ago. That’s how impactful it was.

It is based on Anchien Troskie’s books Dis Ek, Anna and Die Staat Teen Anna Bruwer.

And the message about “breaking the silence” is manifested throughout this movie.

Sometimes a lot can be said through no dialogue – that’s how Blecher opens her movie.

Anna (Brouwer) is driving to Bloemfontein, wearing a pained look that activates those tear ducts. She arrives in front of a house late at night, with a storm raging, and pushes the door bell. In the next frame, a man opens the door, curious to see who it is.

After she says: “Dis Ek, Anna”, his body is pumped with several bullets.

And then her heartbreaking story unfolds, from losing her biological father who committed suicide to her step-father Danie Du Toit (Visser) abusing her for several years. It also explores how she was broken by the trauma of that experience. How it affected her life, especially her relationships, made her act out in the worst way and alienated her from her mother.

Running parallel to this story and Anna’s court case is another case: a baby raped and murdered.

This puts Detective Windhond Weber (Weyers), who is close to retirement, in a very tricky position. He is torn between following the law and seeking vigilante justice from the community.

Unlike some movies where one aspect overrides everything else, Dis Ek, Anna’s magnetism lies in the script, the direction, the casting and the cinematography.

Visually, viewers are effortlessly taken through the different time frames as the story shifts between past and present. And sombre hues are used to lend context to the bleakness.

And then there’s Blecher’s truly insightful and effective treatment of a subject that remains taboo in society.

The casting is spot-on. Brouwer is truly phenomenal in her role. While her character is emotionally and psychologically scarred, she puts on a brave face in public. However, there are those moments, behind closed doors, when she allows herself to exhale all that pain and anger. And she handles those scenes with the sensitivity and authenticity they mandate.

Bezuidenhout, as the young Anna, is equally compelling and really helps to set the tone of the anguish brewing into intense rage.

Visser’s character will be hated throughout the movie. And that’s truly a compliment to the seasoned actor, who did such justice to his paedophile character.

Dis Ek, Anna is a story that triggers a tidal wave of emotions. It will make you angry, sad and, at the same time, paradoxically hopeful.

This is a truly phenomenal piece of cinema, despite its rather unsettling subject matter.

If you liked Ballade and ‘n Man Soos My Pa, you might enjoy this.

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