Movie review: The Bang bang club

The Bang bang club is a drama produced in Canada in 2010, based on a true-life experiences of four photojournalists in South Africa, on the dramatic final days of Apartheid. Working for national newspapers and international agencies, friends Ken Oosterbroek, Kevin Carter, Greg Marinovich and Joao Silva photographed conflicts in the Johannesburg's outskirts. The four gained a nickname of a South African magazine: Bang-Bang Club - a title that was received with resistance initially, but was accepted in the end. This great movie was directed by Steven Silvers, and it was based in João Silva's novel “The Bang bang club: snapshots from a hidden war”. The cast has the charming Ryan Phillippe (The Linconln Lawyer, 2011) as Greg Marinovich, the glamorous Malin Akerman (Watchmen, 2009) as Robin Comley, and the talented Patryck Lyster (Invictus, 2009) as Jim. The soundtrack has Radiohead, Urban Creep and Joe Cuba.

The movie related Kevin Carter's story, who was amazingly interpreted by Taylor Kitsch. Kevin was the prizewinning of The Pulitzer Prizer, with a dramatic photograph about a girl who is dying and a vulture waiting to eat this girl. This movie brings the South Africa political situation on final days of Apartheid through the photographer's eyes. During his quest for the perfect picture, Kevin fell in a clash thinking about his career. One of the hardest Kevin's quote on movie is “They're right. All those people who say it's our job to just sit and watch people die. They're right”. Interestingly, it's when Kevin won the Pulitzer Prize that his moral fibre is called into question.

This movie shows us a side of war we rarely ever see, the side of the photographer shooting a camera instead of a gun. The movie brings to us questioning about how much a life costs. Taking the pictures starts as a way to make money and survive, win awards and become famous. Next, it becomes a movie in which the photographers defend their work, and finally it becomes much more then just taking pictures, they help people understand what is behind the war. Their work becomes a way to educate the rest of the world about what is happening in that part of the world. I recommend this movie because we can see the situation in South Africa, but mainly because we can think about the human being, like what sacrifices we are willing to do, to be the best in our career .