Independent Films, Film Profiles

Catch a Fire (film)
by Phillip_Noyce

Catch a Fire is a 2006 dramatic thriller about terrorists in apartheid-era South Africa, based on a true story.The screenplay was written by Shawn Slovo. Slovo's father, Joe Slovo, appears as a character in the film.The film was shot on location in South Africa, Swaziland and Mozambique.The film revolves around Patrick Chamusso, a young, apolitical man (played by Derek Luke) who is accused of carrying out an attack against the government, and a police officer, Nic Vos, played by Tim Robbins. Vos is in charge of locating the perpetrators of a recent bomb attack - Patrick is unwillingly swept into this investigation; he, his wife, Precious, (played by Bonnie Henna), and his family are tortured and abused by Vos and his government workers. Desperate, he says that he is willing to confess to a crime he did not commit to protect his family from torture.In spite of this, at last the police conclude that Patrick is innocent, and he is released. Fueled by the anger at the injustices suffered, Patrick joins the Umkhonto we Sizwe, the guerrilla military wing of the African National Congress and becomes exactly what Vos had initially accused him of being. This decision was an act of revenge against the government for killing his friend, tormenting not only himself, but his wife as well. He attempts to execute a plan to attack Secunda, the refinery he used to work for, by first bombing the water supply facilities, and 15 minutes later cause the main explosion. This would allow the workers to flee between the two explosions, and not be harmed. Also, the damage of the first bomb would hurt the possibility of extinguishing the fire caused by the second, main explosion. Patrick succeeds in the first part, but the second bomb is discovered by Vos and deactivated. Patrick is arrested and sentenced to 24 years in prison after his wife goes to Vos and tells him where Patrick is because she fell for a simple trick in which Vos left photographs of Patrick talking to a female member of the ANC. Through her unjust jealousy she sells him out. He is released early due to the abolition of apartheid. Precious, who has remarried, is waiting for him and apologizes, and Patrick forgives her and apologizes as well. Some time later, he has been trying to adjust to normal life but the pain he felt wouldn't leave him. One day, he sees Vos sitting out near a small body of water opposite to the side he and friends are on. He creeps over and through some brush sees that it is indeed Vos, and though a part of him wants to break Vos' neck, he decides that it is not worth it, and the real Patrick Chamusso is shown explaining that he told himself then and there that only through forgiveness would he truly be free. He left Vos alone, and went on to remarry and take in over 80 orphaned children in South Africa to provide a home for kids who lost their families during the Apartheid struggles.