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PLOT: Patrick Chamusso was an apolitical family man in South Africa, hard-working, successful and careful not to bite the hand that fed him. Once Chamusso saw the violence under apartheid for himself, he joined the African National Congress to fight for freedom for his country.
Catch A Fire is an interesting combo of biopic and political thriller.
In 1980, Patrick Chamusso (Derek Luke) was working as a foreman at an oil refinery in Secunda. For a black man living under apartheid in South Africa, Chamusso was quite successful. He and his wife and children had a good life, and Catch A Fire begins with his mantra: "Be smart -- keep your head down."
Chamusso understood very well how to get along without making waves.
When an explosion at the refinery is blamed on rebel groups, Chamusso comes under suspicion. He is taken away by South African police, interrogated by Colonel Nic Vos (Tim Robbins), jailed and beaten. Eventually, his wife is also tortured, regardless of Chamusso's attempts to prove his innocence.
The events alter Chamusso forever.
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He joins the African National Congress. He is trained as part of a military unit working out of Maputo in Mozambique and returns to South Africa on a solo mission to bomb the refinery in Secunda.
Catch A Fire is not so much the story of Chamusso's life as it is the story of his awakening to the truth. Gripping events notwithstanding, it's a character-driven film; Derek Luke's performance as Chamusso and Tim Robbins' work as a Security Branch policeman are the engine of this thing. (Robbins is sort of frighteningly good as a man convinced that he's doing the right thing for his country, even when that entails torture or murder.)
It's only a small bit of the recent history of South Africa that's on display in Catch A Fire, but it's a small bit that had important ramifications.
Catch A Fire was written by Shawn Slovo and produced by her sister, Robyn Slovo. Their father, the late Joe Slovo, was the head of the military wing of the ANC. Their mother, Ruth First, was killed by the apartheid regime.
BOTTOM LINE: Derek Luke's performance as an ordinary man who becomes a hero out of love for his country is key to Catch A Fire.
(This film is rated PG)