Film review: Unhinged: Surviving Jo’burg

Director: Adrian Loveland

Starring: Ferial Haffajee, Robbie Brozin, Justice Malala and David O’Sullivan

Category: Black Documentary

Reviewer: Carien Els

Director and narrator Adi Loveland takes the viewer on a manic, almost neurotic tour of the more-than-slightly unhinged city that is Joburg. This fast-paced look at the city’s many facets will have your head spinning with the good, the bad, the ugly and the downright incongruous things that make up Joburg, Jozi, Egoli. I doubt the film will manage to convince non-Joburgers that it’s the best city in South Africa, but Jozi locals will recognise the small and (to outsiders) insignificant things that make them stay rather than defect to Cape Town or Sydney. The noteworthy views of the likes of Ferial Haffajee, Robbie Brozin and Justice Malala are both enjoyable and well balanced, and provide some relief from some of the frenzied and scary issues highlighted. Yet somehow, despite the very distressing realities that Joburgers face, this film leaves you with a prospector’s hope and energy for finding success in a perilous place.

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