SPLICED MOVIES /
REVIEW / Nothing for mahala
Practice
makes Permanent
Thapelo Mokoena
is a personable, friendly
character who is obviously
passionate about the South
African film industry.
The 30 year old actor plays the lead role of
Axe Gumede in his latest movie Nothing for
Mahala, and says that this is his favourite
role to date, not just because he plays
the primary character, but also because
he believes in the message of the film.
Mokoena is charismatic, a fitting trait for
a leading man, but this open and friendly
actor who studied acting at film school,
has always been driven to succeed, and has
some wonderful and inspiring stories to tell.
I got the chance to chat to him about
his latest film, and eventually abandoned
my questions in favour of his insights into
not only the film, but his views on living
beyond your means and the betterment of
South African film production.
We speak about money, about debt,
about being financially responsible and
savvy, all of the themes that are prominent
in the film. The irony that a film about debt
and owing money is funded by a bank is lost
on neither of us, but he argues that if the
financial institutions can “give back and add
value to society, so much the better.”
He spoke to me of Soccer Player Syndrome
– taking a young man from a rural area who
has never had money, putting him in an urban
environment to play a sport that he loves, but
giving him money that he doesn’t know how
to handle, and then we wonder why ultimately
so many of them end up broke.
He argues that if we “use the power of
motion picture to guide, to empower, to
develop, to rehabilitate society… and if you
can make people laugh and teach them
something while you’re at it, it’s something.”
He speaks also of his grandfather who
bought a car at the age of 74, with physical
cash that he had saved up because he didn’t
want to owe anyone money, and you can
see the admiration in his face as he speaks of
this man. It’s a heart-warming story that he
admits is not practical in today’s society, but
says that it was about the journey.
I ask him how we can help uplift the rest
of the industry to what is in this case an
incredibly high standard and production value
and his answer is one that resonated with
me on many levels – he tells me seriously,
“We could practice more. Practice makes
permanent. Not perfect, permanent.”
A fitting life lesson we could apply to
every aspect of our lives – the more you do
something, the harder you
work at it, this is the way you
Listen
get better at what you do
to the
and what you love. Perhaps interview
there’s hope for us yet.
124
ISSUE 01
“We could practice more.
Practice makes permanent.
Not perfect, permanent.”
himself deeper and deeper into debt
through a series of bad decisions.
We feel pity for him, but we also feel
hope, and it’s a credit to the actors,
writer and director that we empathise
so completely with the characters.
We feel Axe’s despair, Reneilwe’s
sense of betrayal, and Hendrick’s
disappointment at his life choices.
The story speaks to us on so many
levels – as South Africans, but more
importantly as people, and could
easily hold its own against any
international comedy.
On many levels the story might
be predictable, but the actors
play their roles superbly. You’ll
laugh at Hendrick and his grumpy
mischievousness, and roll your eyes
at Jamie Bartlett’s portrayal of Axe’s
boss Mike.
Indeed this is one of the best local
comedies I’ve seen in years. Right off
the starting block, the production
value on this film is top notch, and
it shows in every aspect of the film,
from editing, to music and location.
Think you’ve seen lead actor Thapelo
Mokoena somewhere before?
He’s “The Hunter’s Guy” from the
Hunter’s Dry adverts – “My china's,
china's, china's”.