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Presley Chweneyagae, Terry Pheto, Kenneth Nkosi, Mothusi Magano, Zenzo Ngqobe ... see more see more... , Annemarie Zola , Rapulana Seiphemo , Nambitha Mpumlwana , Nonthuthu Sibisi , Nthuthuko Sibisi , Jerry Mofokeng , Ian Roberts , Percy Matsemela , Ben Moshe , Thembi Nyandeni , Israel Makoe , Sindi Shambule , Zola

An amoral teenager develops an unexpected paternal side in this powerful drama from South Africa. Tsotsi (Presley Chweneyagae) is the street name used by a young Johannesburg delinquent who has taken ... read more read more...to a life of crime in order to support himself. Tsotsi comes from a blighted upbringing -- his mother died slowly from AIDS-related illnesses, and his father was torturously abusive -- and he has developed a talent for violence borne of necessity as well as taking strange pleasure in hurting other people. One evening, Tsotsi shoots a woman while stealing her car, and only later discovers that her infant son is in the back seat. Uncertain of what to do with the baby, Tsotsi takes the boy home and tries to care for it -- going so far as to force Miriam (Terry Pheto), a single mother living nearby, to nurse the baby. With time, Tsotsi learns the basics of child care, and the presence of the baby awakens a sense of humanity in him that life on the street had stripped away. Tsotsi was adapted from a novel by the award-winning South African writer Athol Fugard. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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82% liked it

37,985 ratings

Critics

82% liked it

127 critics

R, 1 hr. 31 min.

Directed by: Gavin Hood

Release Date: February 24, 2006

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DVD Release Date: July 18, 2006

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Stats: 1,978 reviews

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david Zuma Boston Terry and Presley Morris The Stacks tsotsi gang... The gang in Tsotsi tsotsi In Tsotsi as Miriam Close up of Terry Pheto in Tsotsi Playing dice... Zola Playing the gangster Fela in Tsotsi. Presley Chweneyagae as the title role in Tsotsi. Butcher Zola and Tsotsi terry pheto Tsotsi (Thug)
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Flixster Reviews (1,978)

  • brooklynspo
    June 3, 2007
    brooklynspo
    Amazing, intense perfomance in the lead role - reminded me of Jimmy Cliff in The Harder They Come - the setting was fascinating, the direction solid and dynamic, killer tunes... but... i think Charlie Chaplin actually passed on this script back in 1918 - citing the "transparen... read moret, hack sentimentalism".
  • FiLmCrAzY
    July 19, 2009
    FiLmCrAzY
    This is an alright movie to be honest its completely in subtitles but dont et that put you of! If i compared it to anothr movie it would be similar to kidulthood/adulthood just that its based in south africa jonaahburg, but along te same line its just about a poor group of lads w... read moreho have no way of iving apart from resulting to crime and this one day tsotsi steals a car which turns ut to have a baby in the back and he must do the right thing so it leads him on a journey of rights and wrongs and we see th horrible unbringing hes had in life and its quite a captivating heartwarming movie and its worth a watch though i didnt particualy like the ending but apart from that yu get to see what its like for poor people in south africa an troubles life gives tem really worth a watch!
  • DrBenway
    May 12, 2009
    DrBenway
    Unlike most predecessors that rely on racially motivated, Apartheid-inspired stories, Tsotsi abandons the race card and deals with current issues that are not only in South Africa, but applicable anywhere else on earth. It's themes make it understandable and therefore approachabl... read moree. Has been compared time and time again to City Of God, but where that film struck a more realistic chord, Tsotsi is a bit more sentimental yet very much worth seeing.
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  • 76Majikat
    May 11, 2009
    76Majikat
    A hard hitting film with an intense amount of violent behaviour and fear followed by (in complete contrast) an instinctive guide for love and survival.

    The story itself isn?t by any means too complicated, but the emotions run from such extremes it?ll have you thinking with you... read morer heart and not your head.

    This is certainly the type of film that stays with you for days after watching it. The music throughout is very fitting to the changing mood of the film. The special features show 3 different endings, if this interests you.
  • ironclad1609
    July 22, 2008
    ironclad1609
    The Oscar-awarded film about a South African township thug who ends up caring for a baby he accidentally kidnapped. The portrayal of his life and the situation in such slums is realistic and adequate, the acting good, the story shows Tsotsis change into a caring human being slowl... read morey and not too soppy, revealing his background with only few flashbacks. And while all that's entertaining, and true and partly sad and touching, I somehow expected more, after all the critical acclaim it got. A good movie, but in the end a lot more conventional than everyone made me believe.
  • tsigur
    June 29, 2008
    tsigur
    A powerful film with a good performance from the lead actor (you try spelling his name), but also pretty standard.
  • YLOWBSTARDreturns
    February 9, 2008
    YLOWBSTARDreturns
    Flawed, but still very good.
  • DrZeek
    October 25, 2006
    DrZeek
    Do you know what decency is?

    It's a movie about a thug, actually Tsotsi literally translates to thug, and he winds up with a baby. This makes him start to think. He thinks about life, the world, others, and his own life. These things counteract his thug life, and he arrives at a... read more loss of what to do with his life. He wants to change. Very good performances and very nice use of South Africa as the backdrop. Good soundtrack as well. A very good redemption film.
  • gator681
    April 23, 2007
    gator681
    [font=Century Gothic]In "Tsotsi", Tsotsi(Presley Chweneyagae) and his gang rob and kill a man on a train. Afterwards, Boston(Mothusi Magano) is the only one of the gang to feel any remorse, for which he is soundly beaten by Tsotsi who then runs off. He wanders into a wealthy ne... read moreighborhood, steals a car and shoots a woman attempting to stop him. Soon, he finds out why she was so intent on stopping him when he discovers a baby in the back seat and takes it with him when he abandons the car.[/font]
    [font=Century Gothic][/font]
    [font=Century Gothic]"Tsotsi" is a crassly manipulative movie that is scarcely believable in the least. To start, I don't think Tsotsi would have taken the baby unless there was some possible financial return. And I certainly understand somebody who has to steal to eat but killing is another matter entirely, and it is not something that can easily be walked away from, no matter how much the filmmakers may try to explain it away. Which is a shame because the movie valiantly tries to make a statement about the disparity between rich and poor in post-Apartheid South Africa. [/font]
  • michaelneumann
    October 24, 2006
    michaelneumann
    Let me tell you about Israeli airport security. Okay, sure, I have a schvatz of more interesting experiences to relate, as I am currently in Jerusalem, but this one clings to my mind like a yarmulka in a windstorm. That is to say, it's mysteriously clingy.

    I'll be terse. Flight... read more was at 11:20 in the PM from Cairo to Tel Aviv. I arrive at 7. I heard stories. Risking missed flights is something I only practice in domestic travel (extensively). Early was the way to go, just in case. *cue ominous hava nagila* The entire El-Al Airlines counter area was cordoned off, and within were a cadre of passengers being interrogated one-by-one. My passport was double- and triple-taked before I was waved over to a music stand, where the Israeli security 'conductor' began her badgering. What happens next was an amusing defragmentation of my previous several hours, days, weeks, including the assorted tiny histories of each knick-knack and paddywhack I had in my packs. I was an excellent storyteller, a funny one, but my charms, even on low voltage, would not mollify the determined, humorless visage of this female character. I mean, could she be any more Jewish? Meshugass! I recited family histories, travel histories, the well-versed and humbling history of my extreme note-taking ticks, the true history of the ink pens I had with me, the history of Honduras after 1926, the unsurpassable history of the lint in my dangfangled bags! And, a colorful narration of the photos in my battered and travelworn digicam. As well as the story behind the tape covering the memory card slot ON the camera (something to remember Beijing by). And the lass? Stone-faced as a golem. What a Jew! Can you buh-leeve it? Robots in the holy land... and they say the Jewish Conspiracy was a farce. Ahhhhhem. So this process was repeated and three-peated over the course of an hour. Apparently computers were down, so Security Streisand here thought it best to pass the time by re-deploying the "difficult question" missile barrage. "Why are you going to Israel at a time like this?" she asks, shockingly with a wry smile. Oy vey!

    I believe at some point she achieved satisfaction with her questioning, because I was escorted behind the grey curtains in the back, away from where all the other, apparently less suspicious passengers were led. This is where the contents of my bags were burned and mixed into a small beaker of purple liquid. A drop of the purple inside the green liquid was the litmus, so to speak, and if it remained unchanged, I would only have my memory erased of the entire procedure, but if the purple changed the green to a red, I would be vaporized on the spot (I saw this happen to the unfortunate passenger in front of me). I recall one lobe of my beauteous brain dodging in front of the other as the mind-ray zapper shot its zap, in brave slow-mo, but I don't remember which lobe had courage and which lobe had selfishness. Anyway, as I trained each lobe to function independently, all logical, creative, and supernatural components of my mind were preserved. And probably X-rayed with every other personal item I could produce. Nothing is yours in Israel! [i]In Communist Russia...[/i]

    Apparently two more hours passed before I was escorted to the boarding area. Where those hours went I cannot say. Maybe they boarded the plane before me, like every other freaking shagetz! I do remember seeing a couple of guys that looked like David Schwimmer and Harvey Keitel, and thought, "That's interesting." And then the flight happened, and I had more passport issues in Tel Aviv and another session of Harangue 101 (and thankfully without the science elective, Full Body Cavity Search 111) from several different people who do magnificent things with the mucus in their throats to produce this Hebrew-coated English. Maybe they get together with ze Germans and compete.

    So much for being terse.

    Tomorrow I go to East Gish or Hoyettesville or somewhere. Perhaps I shall return with a clutch of snappy yiddish zingers. Since I still won't be posting pics of my journeys, here is some temporary entertainment for you attention monkeys: Neum rollerskating! Shalom!

    *turns on "Play That Funky Music"*

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Critic Reviews

Roger Moore
April 7, 2006
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

It is a first peek at a South Africa that doesn't need a Hollywood studio or Hollywood stars to present itself to the world, or to come to grips with itself at home. Full Review

Robert Denerstein
March 24, 2006
Robert Denerstein, Denver Rocky Mountain News

Unfolds in such clear-eyed, powerful fashion that its characters become unforgettable, and the movie lands a big-time emotional punch.

Michael Booth
March 24, 2006
Michael Booth, Denver Post

To feel the full power of the movie's wrenching story, you must not rush to judge or embrace young Tsotsi. He is an enigma whose journey is the story. Full Review

Richard Nilsen
March 24, 2006
Richard Nilsen, Arizona Republic

A deeply moving portrait of a human being, suffering in life and not having any handle on how to deal with it. It's tragedy, not melodrama. Full Review

Eleanor Ringel Gillespie
March 23, 2006
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The picture can be squishy and obvious. Yet it works, thanks to Gavin Hood's straightforward, sensitive direction and his star's emotionally charged performance. Full Review

Amy Biancolli
March 17, 2006
Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle

It lays a stark narrative that's devoid of sentimentality but stoked with emotional power; without getting maudlin, it will tear you to shreds. Full Review

Tom Long
March 17, 2006
Tom Long, Detroit News

Tsotsi never lets go of its edge, and that edge draws blood. Full Review

Terry Lawson
March 17, 2006
Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press

It is to [director Gaven] Hood's credit that he does not over-sentimentalize Tsotsi's story, nor does he glamorize thug life like so many American films do. Full Review

Jeff Strickler
March 16, 2006
Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune

We're not used to bad guys with redeeming qualities. And that makes Tsotsi as disquieting as it is intriguing.

Jean Nash Johnson
March 16, 2006
Jean Nash Johnson, Dallas Morning News

For all its dark edges, Tsotsi comes with a silver lining making it worthy of its squirmy ride. Full Review

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