Have you watched “One Night kwa Mxolisi” yet?
The homegrown feature film debuted on Showmax on Friday and on Mzansi Magic (DStv channel 161) on Saturday night.
If you were to ask me what I like about it, my response would be: “What don’t I like about it?”
For those who have managed to watch the movie, is it just me or did Sisanda Henna get hotter during the lockdown? I mean he is all kinds of smouldering on screen.
Looks aside, though, let’s give him props for giving us such a brilliantly executed movie.
Everything from the writing, casting of Fulu Mugovhani, Nayniso Dzedze, Linda Mtoba and Motlatsi Mafatshe to the directing is spot-on.
His years in the industry have been well spent, clearly. He not only has the lay of the land from a cinematic perspective, he understands the components necessary for great storytelling.
Now here’s a few fun facts about the movie.
Henna’s first-born, Micaiah, has been cast as Olwethu (aka Olly). Donovan Goliath makes his feature debut in this film.
“One Night kwa Mxolisi” had me hooked from start to finish. I loved the use of music in several of the mood scenes.
And there are plenty of those, trust me.
This is a story about a close-knit group of friends who meet for dinner at Mxolisi’s (Henna) new restaurant. A once-promising rugby player, an injury has left him wrestling with a big decision around his future.
As the friends ease into the evening with plenty of vino and some of the stronger stuff, the weight of certain life decisions by several of the friends is felt by everyone.
This slice of life offering is a celebration of friendship, love, trust, communication and forgiveness.
JULIA STILES IS AS FIERY AS EVER
Okay, so the third instalment of the compelling drama series, “Riviera”, debuted on BBC Brit on Wednesday.
Having been a fan of the show since the first season, I had to watch. Cliffhanger endings merit such curiosity.
Julia Stiles remains a tour de force in her role as art curator Georgina Marjorie Clios.
Although, after the murder and mayhem attached to her time with the Clios, she wants to go back to her maiden name. A decision she is chastised for by Gabriel Hirsch (Rupert Graves), an antiquities recovery expert, who feels she will be able to get more doors in the art world to open if she didn’t.
Before I delve into why Stiles is so magnificent in this role, I have to sing the praises of the person who dresses her.
The last time I was this gaga over a character’s wardrobe it was with the legal drama, “Suits”. Remember how Rachel Zane (Meghan Markle), Donna Paulsen (Sarah Rafferty) and Jessica Pearson (Gina Torres) would turn heads the moment they walked into a room?
Well, Stiles also has that wow factor, her outfits - flowy dresses and such - complementing the moneyed French Riviera backdrop, beautifully.
The scripting is genius, too. It’s laden with suspense, danger and witty manoeuvres.
In the opening scene of the new season, Georgina appears to be in therapy.
She starts off by saying, “I’m not saying what I did was right. It wasn’t. I just think I had soaked up all the things my mother had said to me. The things that she did. And because I hadn’t dealt with it, it started to seep in like an infection.
“When I was under attack, that’s where I went, to her reactions, her version of me.”
It is when she sets her therapist on fire that the bubble bursts and you realise it was a dream - an apt one given that blazing cliffhanger of the previous season where she set her gallery on fire.
Again, it also does boil down to justification. Is she is a victim of circumstance or a victim of her own bad decisions?
I’m still trying to wrap my head around which one it could be.
That said, I do believe viewers will enjoy her new cloak-and-dagger shenanigans now that she’s moved over to art restitution.
Also, Georgina’s world is vastly different. More so, as she’s not weighed down by family obligations or guilt. Well, not in the way that she used to be anyway!