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Catch a Fire (2006)
This is Radio Freedom.
The voice of the African National Congress. South Africa's time-tested revolutionary movement In the South African capital of Pretoria, three black people were hanged this morning. They were all members of the outlawed African National Congress. This is our land. This is what we fought for. It belongs to us. It belongs to us. ...Communist manufactured guns, ammunition and explosives have been seized in Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth. We're considered by some people to be a doomed nation, which we don't believe we are. Keeping black and white separate. Policies which the outside world universally condemns. Whites cannot forever rule 25 million blacks. They are a tribe of whites fiercely determined to survive. Only one African country is left with a totally white government. The battle for South Africa has... This is the first startling message we have heard about apartheid. It means just what it sounds like...apart. My mother gave me the name Rogerio, and then my father gave me the name Patrick. When I was small I used both of them, but I like the one my father gave me. Patrick. Patrick Chamusso. My father had come from Mozambique with the migrant workers to the mines of South Africa. When I was 15 I started to work underground. I became a man in that place. The plant that provides oil for the whole country. A hard place. I always thought, "Patrick, you are from outside. "Be smart. "Keep your head down for yourself and for your family. " I worked hard, pulled myself up. Made good friends and a good life. I was cruising, just cruising. Who took my snuff? Precious, keep straight. Mom! Now. Change gears. Oh! Oh! Oh! Hey, Precious! Sorry! Sorry! Precious, you can't stop like that. Out! No, Patrick! Patrick, how am I supposed to learn? No! Get out! Nice moves, sissie. Mrs. Stirling Moss. Sittin' here, eatin' my heart out waitin' Waitin' for some lover to call I dialed about a 1000 numbers lately Almost rang the phone off the wall Gotta have some hot stuff baby this evenin' I want some hot stuff baby tonight I need some hot stuff baby this evenin' Gotta have some hot stuff Gotta have some love tonight I want some hot stuff I need some hot stuff Hey! It's a scaevola. How does it grow up here? What's this now? Patrick Chamusso, baas. That's my family, baas. Give me your pass. Out of the car. Come, everyone, out! It's my camera, baas. Whose car is this? My car, baas. Patrick. Where are you going? Patrick? I'm going home, baas. And where do you get the money for this nice car and that nice camera? No, baas, I work. I have a job. I'm a foreman, baas. I work at Secunda. Go ahead. Search him. Hold still. What's wrong with you, huh? Hey, you, come here. Down! Down. Christ, they really buggered you up. So, you leave the country, train in exile with the ANC, come back as a terrorist. Boom! There goes a railway track. You say you're in a struggle to make life better for the blacks. But who do you hurt? Blacks, whites, everyone. If you succeed, who do you think is going to be running things? The ANC? No. We'll be taking our marching orders from Moscow, my friend. From the communists, that train you, supply you weapons. And now, my job is to see to it that you are hanged. But I don't want to hang you. I want to help you. Patrick! Security. I'm going to charge you, boy. Baas, wait. No, man. You people have your own toilets over there. Baas, please. There's a cracked pipe in ash washing. If you hold him, we're one man short. It's an emergency, Priority A. Just one time. He's a cheeky Kaffir. Yes, he's a cheeky Kaffir. I'm telling you, you're lucky, boy. Thank you, bass. Up, up. Up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up! You, up! Up, up, up, up, up, up! Head up! Breathe! In! Out! Come on! Pass! Pass, pass! Spread out, spread out! Pass. Head up! Head up! Spread out! Spread out, spread out! Yes! What's your name? His name is Sixpence. My nephew from Innesport. His mother passed away so he's staying with me now. Be here next Tuesday. You're in the team. Well done, boy. That's my boy! Next time, you must ask for permission. Don't just join in. Boys, boys. We have a new player on the team. His name is Sixpence. No fighting! Yes, coach. Yes, coach. Yes, coach! Good. This is Radio Freedom, the voice of the African National Congress, South Africa's time-tested revolutionary movement. Born of the people into the front lines to spearhead the people's struggle for the seizure of power. Hi, boy. What is this to do with you? This is my radio, this is my house. Do you want to see me in jail? That's good, big boy. I tell you what. Go pack your bag. I'll drive you to the station, buy you a ticket to Mozambique. You can join up with the boys of Umkhonto we Sizwe, come back and liberate the country. You, better wash yourself before you get in my bed. Your bed? Mmm. What are you looking at? You. And, how do I look? Not bad. Patrick! Girls don't like trucks. They like books, dolls, you know. Ta-da! It's the suite of my dreams, Patrick. Hmm? Then get a job and buy it yourself. A job? Is that what you want? Patrick, when people come to visit and we sit in that room, I'm ashamed. Baby, you're a boss man now. A foreman. Precious, we can't afford it. Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire. Okay, ja. I got him, Pa. Next time keep your eyes open. Yeah. All right, pick up the weapon. No, no, no. Always at the target. Put your weight on your front foot. I can't. Come on, come on! Run, run, run! I'm going to fetch him. Maybe at Christmas when I get my bonus. Maybe at Christmas we'll be dead. Hey, don't talk like that. I'm going away. Tell me you'll miss me. Come on. Like a hole in my head. Come with me down paradise road This way please I'll carry your load This you must believe Katie, you may be in a position, God forbid, when knowing how to shoot could save your life. Ja. I mean... We've got to look out for robbers. Susan's mum and dad were killed in the night. It's not the robbers we worry about. It's the terrorists. The communists. This family is a target. I hate this. All this talk of guns and killing. Anna. Enough! Thank you. Patrick. Precious, we beat the Spartans! We made it to the finals. Secunda Lions. Forwards ever. Backwards never. Oh, Precious, phone the plant for me. Tell them I'm sick. Patrick? Who's that? I heard a girl there, Patrick. Who is that? Precious, it's a woman waiting to use the phone. I am warning you! Precious, stop your nonsense. Phone Secunda. Tell them I'm sick. Precious? Precious? Precious? Pass the ball! Pass! Sixpence, pass! Go, Sixpence, go! Go, Sixpence! Go! Goal! No. No. My father left when I was 10. And I never saw him again. Its better he doesn't know. Try to visit again soon. Please. It's hard. I'll come when I can. Oh, wow! What's that? Fire, man! It's fire! Shit, man! Watch your mouth. I hope it's the school. It's Secunda. Earlier this week, Minister of Police, Mr. Louis le Grange, warned that South Africa is in a virtual state of war... Is it safe? Day or night, the plant keeps going. What? Bye-bye. Bye. The plant here in Secunda uses a revolutionary technique to convert coal into oil and petrol. Bye, Ma. Almost half of South Africa's cars use the fuel processed in this particular plant. Perhaps it's too early to speculate, but if this is confirmed as a terrorist attack it'll be the largest sabotage... Come on, arms up. You think you're so clever, huh? You and your bloody terrorists! ...two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen. I think it makes nine. Okay. Count. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten... I've done nothing! Come on. Chamusso's in the checked shirt. Patrick Chamusso? Yes. Yes, what do you want from me? Let him go! Let him go! What are you doing? Daddy! Take your hands off my daddy! Get away from him! Daddy! Daddy. Let me go! Patrick! Let me go! Patrick! Precious! Let her go. Precious! Patrick! Patrick. I'm very sorry, Mrs. Chamusso. We have to ask your husband some questions. I wanna be your friend. I want to be your friend. Who is your contact? I'm asking you a question now, Patrick. Look at me in the eyes. I said, look at me! Are you a member of the ANC? It's simple. You think a communist is a good thing? What the hell have you done to him? Here. Sit up. Get up. It's water. Slowly. Slowly. Slowly. I want a doctor to take a look at him. Now! Here. Why won't they let him go, Zuko? Why are they still holding him? And Johnny, too. I don't know. And that night he wasn't even in Secunda. You know him, Zuko, he's not into politics. His family, his work, his football. That's Patrick's life. I must go to Joburg and find a lawyer. That's what I must do. He doesn't have the right a lawyer. Only if they charge him. Charge him with what? At the moment, they can hold him as long as they want. What am I supposed to do? What am I supposed to do now? I want to know who you are. When I look at a man I don't see a terrorist. I see a human being. I told you 100 times. I'm innocent. I am not ANC. How many men in your maintenance team? A foreman and two other men. You, Zuko September, Johnny Piliso. Who collects the vehicles? Who signs for the keys? The foreman on the shift. That night, that would be you. I told you, I wasn't there. I was sick. Did you see a doctor? Yes. Got a sick note? Yes. Yes. The doctor's note was forged, Patrick. We know that. You are lying. I'm a coach for Secunda Lions. Township kids. We were in the playoffs at Ermelo. We stayed an extra day. I have no holiday left this year. And I don't want to lose my job. It's good what Patrick does with those boys. Giving them a focus. Keeping them off the streets. Good man. So, that day, he takes the boys to the playoffs in Ermelo. They win. 2-1. And then he drives somewhere. Takes off in the Kombi. Do you know where he went? Who he met? In the middle of the night? Patrick. It's Sunday. Day of rest. Let's get you cleaned up. Take a drive. Between you and me, Patrick, apartheid cannot last. Twenty-five million blacks. Three million white people. We are the underdogs. We are the ones under attack. Amen. Amen. I'm starving. Maybe Patrick would like some gravy please, Elsie. Cool drink, Mom? Thank you. Patrick, don't tell me. Let me guess. No, I'm Shangaan. Oh. I usually can tell. Patrick also has daughters. Two. Is it? How old? Albertina, she's eight. Lindiwe, she's six. How sweet. That's the best age. The little one, she's naughty. She is very bad. Patrick has a beautiful wife. Miss Highveld Africa... Yes. She likes nice things. Nice clothes. Nice furniture. Is there something wrong with that? No. Nothing wrong. She's got class, man. She does. Sing along, Patrick. You know the words, yeah? Were you singing, Patrick? Celebrating the terrorist attacks? Ask anybody in Secunda and they will you that Patrick Chamusso is not a terrorist. They would laugh at you. I saw your boys. I watched them play. That one kid. Sixpence? He's really good, huh? After supper you dropped the boys off at the school in Ermelo. Then you took off somewhere. In the morning you were late picking them up. That's what they said. We checked the mileage on the vehicle. That tells us you drove to the plant. You fixed the mines. No. Then where were you that night, Patrick? When you dropped the boys off, where did you go? He's pissed off now. Watch this, Mommy. I used to do that when I was a girl. You show me. There's another woman. Not far from here. That's where I was. Yes? I love my wife. You're lying. Nice try, Patrick. Did you know your friend Johnny had a weak heart? Is somebody here? Is somebody here? Hello. Hello? Precious! What have they done to you? What have they done to you? I'm sorry. Precious. I'm sorry. Nic Vos! I am talking to you, Nic Vos! I will stand up in court and this is what I will say. After the game, I fetched the boys to the school in Ermelo. I went to Secunda. After that I opened the east perimeter fence. Patrick, stop! No one saw me. I was there ten minutes and I was gone. You can do anything you want to do with me. But you must release my wife! What kind of man are you who does these things to a woman? What kind of man are you? Pray. I am talking to you, Nic Vos. Here it is. I will stand up in court and this is what I will say. I let him go. After the game, I fetched the boys. I took the boys to the school in Ermelo. He didn't do it. I let him go. He confessed on tape. Confessed? To what? That he cut a hole in the fence? They got in with a key. You know that. He said he did it. Okay? That's good enough for me. So we lie to get a conviction. We hang him. We lock him in jail for the rest of his life for something he didn't do. In the meantime, there's a terrorist loose on the ground. What the hell is the point in that? Our job is to find the terrorists. Daddy! That night I was in Evander. You told me it was finished. You told me 10 times, you said it was finished. It's true. It is finished. So why did you go to her house? I will make this right. I promise I will make this right. Comrades and compatriots, duty calls. The battle lines are drawn. The African National Congress commands and urges all of us to act for unity and as one to engage the enemy. If united, there's action. The time has come. This government of slavery. This government of oppression. This apartheid monster must be removed from power. They will never stop the rage. The arrests, the beatings, the killings. Until the day we end white rule. Let this be the year of the most powerful offensive against the apartheid regime. Let this be the year of the great unity action. Let this be the year of the great leap forward to the threshold of victory. OBADl: Have you told anyone that you were coming to Mozambique? No. Not even my family. Once you cross that fence. Once you decide to fight back, everything is different. You cannot contact anyone on the other side. That means no phone calls, no letters. You may never see your family again. Do you still wanna go on? They have killed my friend, tortured my wife for nothing. Yes, I want to go on. Yes. I want to go on. When's Daddy coming back? He'll let us know. You were asleep. He didn't want to wake you. Girls, girls, stop asking so many questions. Just eat up. Patrick. OBADl: Fall in, man! I know you. Each one of you, I know who you are! I know why you are here. Commander. Murder the Boers. OBADl: We don't kill indiscriminately. OBADl: We're fighting for freedom, comrades. South Africa belongs to all who live in it! We train you, we arm you, we send you back. The Boers, they capture you. Will you be able to hold steadfast? Or will you begin to sing? We're ice-cool, Comrade. We're from Soweto. I'm from Soweto, Comrade. But if they catch me, I will shit in my pants. The Boers, they kill you. Are you ready to die? Are you ready to die? Yes, Commander! Are you ready to die? Yes, Commander. Are you ready to die? Yes, Commander! Are you ready to die? Yes, Commander! Are you ready to die? Yes, Commander! Yes, Commander! Yes, Commander! There's the office here. Where's the entrance? The entrance is here on Avenida Julius Nyerere. Where do the people from the office stay? There's a house. Here. How many? Two to three cadres. Comrade J.S. No, we don't know where he stays. Zuma? Tambo? Sir, these people, they move around. They sleep in different places. One night there, the other night... Betsy. Pete My Baby? Where do they stay? In this... What floor are they on? Where's the arms cache? Don't shake your head at me. When did these come in? Yesterday. Bye. Bye-bye. Bye, mum. Bye. Bye-bye. See you, Mum. Bye! Bye-bye! Bye-bye! Going back to work? Give you a lift. You've lost your house now. Living in a one-room shack. No money coming in. Maybe I can help you, Precious. Use my influence. Find you somewhere better to live. When you hear from Patrick, you let me know. You must ask yourself... "Where is he?" "Who is he with now?" "Where does he sleep at night?" Yeah. So many days, so many weeks pass sitting around here thinking about my family. Why I came here? Obrigado. OBADl: On all the anniversaries, my marriage, the birthdays, in my mind, I see my wife and my kids. And I put myself in that place, there with them. And I imagine what it will be like when South Africa is free and I am home again. And then my heart starts to beat faster. Quanto? Attention, comrades. Attention! There's Frelimo outside to check our papers, so follow me. Comrade, I don't have papers. Me, too. Okay, the two of you, you stay here. OBADl: Come on, all of you. Could you be loved And be loved Go! Go! Go! Obadi? Obadi. Hold on. If you would have planned it better you could have blown up the whole plant. There's different security there now. Look out posts here, here, Mmm-hmm. and here, there's a new water pump. The water in there is for chemical fires. You must go there first. The alarm. Everybody leaves. The ground is cleared. The workers are safe. There's no water to put out chemical fires. The second bomb goes here at the core reactor. Boom, boom, boom. The whole plant is gone. Hot stuff. Mr. Hotstuff. They stole our brothers in Africa. Run, oppressor, run All are freedom fighters. In South Africa, Mozambique, Angola and Rhodesia. Let them be strengthened. Run out of black-man's land This is the fight for liberation. There were over forty thousand of us in Angola, training to go home and liberate our country. We were getting ready for secret missions, so we knew each other by code names. My friend from Mozambique had already been given his name. Pete My Baby. We shall be housed with security and comfort. But me, Patrick Chamusso, now I became Hotstuff. Run out of black-man's land Oh, yeah, now, now Run out of black-man's land Sing it one more time Run, oppressor, run Run out of black-man land Sorry, sir. Latest informer's reports from Swaziland. Dankie. And here he is again and again. And again. Limpet mines. Red splint is inserted here. The fuse is inserted here. You pull the safety pin out. After 15 minutes, this circle here will be red. And the bomb will explode. Yes. How long to empty the plant after the first explosion? Twelve minutes. Maybe less. Set the mines for 15 minutes, just to make sure. No one must die. I know. Okay. One, two... From now on your name is James Mabuso. James Mabuso. Remember, when you get to Secunda, keep away from your family. Keep away from your wife. Reason for entering South Africa? I'm going to Florida to buy parts for my business. Please, sit down. Go. Mr. Mabuso. I'll give you 14 days. Thanks. He's heading west. Probably rendezvous in Secunda area. Slowing down. Slowing down. Stopped. Go! Go! Stop! Stop! Stop! I thought you were a ghost, man. Precious, my kids. How's my family? They stay on Fifth Street now. The company took back the house. Precious is in Witbank. She's got a job. Don't worry. I'm watching them. Thank you. Hmm. My husband was the caretaker, but they've closed the mine now. They didn't give me a pension. I'm not supposed to rent out rooms but I need the money. Five rand a week. And I'II... I'll cook for you also. Out of the way! Out of the way! Out of the way! He's a terrorist. Pete My Baby. I killed him, Dad. All right. It's all right. Daddy's here. I shot him, Dad. He just came through. He had a gun but I shot him first. You protected us. You were brave. You were strong. You did what you had to do, darling. Darling... Who was he, Dad? Why was he here? He was a thief with a gun. Some skelm from the township. I'm sorry. It's okay. It's all right. It's all right. It's all right. Precious. Somebody left this for you. I don't want any trouble, my girl. Okay? It's done. Chewing gum? Can you reach the plant from that shaft? The elevators still works. If you worked underground, you could. Go, go, go, go, go, go! He'll be coming out at mine shaft number three. That's correct. Repeat, mine shaft number three. Go, go, go, go, go! Get back. Back. Back! Back! Police. That door. Right. Come on, boys. Quietly. Block every road in every direction. Echo Seven, Echo Seven. Block every road in every direction. I'll check the core reactor. You search. Found it. Sierra 1 from Sierra 7. Sir, they reported a man crashing through the barrier at Kinross. Two police down. Repeat, two police down. Miriam! Excuse me, sir. There's a girl outside to see you. Stop! Stop! Hands up! Take off your clothes! Take off your clothes! Your pants! Take them off! He's clean. You people will never learn. They'll probably hang you. Or if you're lucky you'll spend the rest of your life in jail. There's nothing else you can do with me. My life is finished. I may never see my children again, but when they speak of their father, they will say, "He was a man who stood up for what was right. "A man who said, 'I must do something now. '" What will your children say about you? Years later, when I came back to that township, the neighbors said that after that day, Zuko and Sixpence were never seen again. He kept me there at that farm for many months, trying to find where our leaders might be. So, they could also be killed. I was sentenced to 24 years in prison on a little island at the bottom of Africa, Robben Island. There were almost Mostly men like me, found guilty of treason. Men who spent their days breaking rocks. So many hearts filled with sorrow and filled with anger. But our leader, our father, he told us, we could never be free until we learned to forgive. Africa. After five years in that prison, Precious, had written to say, she was getting married again. And after another five years I found the power in my heart to forgive. Then they were forced to end the system of apartheid that had kept our people down and we could go home again, back to Africa. Precious. You look good. A little more curvy. Are you saying I'm fat? Maybe. Lindiwe passed Matric with flying colors. Second in her class. Oh, that's my girl. Albertina has a boyfriend. No, you didn't tell me that. Patrick, it's only since last week. She thinks maybe you won't like him. She's scared about that. She should be. Patrick, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Yeah, me too. I'm sorry. I tried to settle down, start again. Moved back to live close to my kids. Started even to understand myself. My mistakes. But that man. That pain he caused to so many. That pain kept coming back. I kept seeing him. In my nights and the days. I moved closer to prove to my mind that it was him. That monster. Then I said to myself, "Patrick, you can end it now. "Break his neck. Kill him. "Here in this spot. End it. " As I was walking towards him, I said, "No, oh, no! "Killing is not going to help me. "Revenge is not good. "It's going to be... It's going to carry on war "for this generation, and the next generation. "Let me let him live and then I will be free. "I am free and everyone is free. So, I built this house so every child that has been left without parents is coming here. It belongs to them. It's not my house anymore. Those are the owners of this house. |
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