A New Leaf

We all are driven in life by various desires and passions. One thing I believe most people have in common is the warm feeling we get when helping someone in need. The very thought that the individual in need could not have succeeded, or had the outcome they had, without our help makes us feel accomplished. Doing ‘right’ in this world is defined differently probably by every individual, but the feeling of doing ‘good’ is what I believe we have in common.

The film Tsotsi portrays the evolution of a young man, Tsotsi, from a cruel gang leader into a compassionate young man. Tsotsi means gangster and he chooses to use this name instead of his actual, David, because of the unbearable childhood memories that occur when he uses his birth name. He is a gang leader and lives a life one would expect of such an individual: blood, money, and anger. After beating the crap out of one of his best friends and fellow gang member, Magano, he runs off into the night. He goes to the rich part of town and finds a woman who left her BMW running to unlock her gate. Tsotsi, without any reluctance, jumps in the car to steal it. The woman fights in attempt to get in that car and keep him from stealing it, so Tsotsi shoots her and scurries away. He comes to find that the reason this woman wanted the car so badly was because of her baby boy in the back seat.

The life in which he resides remains in a cyclical motion until the baby enters his life. Even beyond this point it is obvious that Tsotsi finds it difficult to do anything without involving some sort of violence. Since he grew up practically raising himself, he has no clue how to feed this child or keep him happy. He sees a woman in the street with her own child and follows her home. Holding a gun to her head, Tsotsi makes the woman breast feed the child and help console him. It is at this point where Tsotsi seems to almost reexamine his means of living. It is an understatement to say that Tsotsi lived a difficult life, so it is completely understandable that this is how he lives. However, the turning of a new leaf causes one to believe that there is hope.

Tsotsi and his cyclical gang-life seems to cycle into a new direction; one of compassion. The finale of the movie consists of him saving the father of the child’s life, returning the child back to his rich parents, and giving in to the law. It is weird to say that I actually wanted Tsotsi to get out of trouble, and wanted the police to let him off the hook. We don’t really get to see what happens to him, but I highly doubt that did. I think this movie provides a good lesson for most people, and would highly recommend many to watch. It shows us that even the people we deem as evil and heartless, deep down, are just missing something. The void of something in someone’s heart or mind is what needs to be filled. Rather than jumping to conclusions, we need to realize that it is possible for people to turn over a new leaf; to do good for others as well as for themselves.