- Tengers
Infobox Film
name = Tengers
caption =
director = Michael J. Rix
producer = Michael J. Rix
writer = Michael J. Rix
narrator =
starring = Michael J. Rix Jo Day Rob Vega Anton Schmidt Phillip Mathebula
music =
cinematography =
editing =
distributor = Mirror Mountain Pictures
released =2007
runtime = 75 min.
country =South Africa
language = English
budget = US$ 250,000 [cite web | last = | first = | coauthors = | title = Mandy.com | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = | date = October 2007| url = http://www.mandy.com/1/film3.cfm?id=5406]
preceded_by =
followed_by =
website = http://www.tengers.com/
amg_id =
imdb_id ="Tengers" is a
2007 South African animatedfilm written, directed and produced by Michael J. Rix. It is the first full-length animation produced in South Africa [cite web | last = O'Ehley | first = James | coauthors = | title = SA Movie & DVD Magazine review | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = | date = October 2007| url = http://www.samoviemag.co.za/reviews/tengers.html Review by SAMovieMag/] and uses theclaymation technique.The film is a satirical
black comedy about life in post-Apartheid South Africa. Rix has said his intention was to make a film that was: “Entertaining but not frivolous. Political but not preachy. Sophisticated but not alienating.” [cite web | last = | first = | coauthors = | title = Official Tengers website | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = | date = | url = http://www.tengers.com/]Characters
Rob, an unemployed writer, working on the “great South African novel”.
Marius, Rob’s friend, struggling to make ends meet on a meagre cop’s salary.
Christine, a bank teller and artist. Also the girl of Rob’s dreams.
Minor characters include: Vusi, a taxi driver, Jack, a professional
carjacker , and Fud, a homeless beggar.Synopsis
The film opens with Rob’s mistaken arrest for bank robbery. He explains to Marius that he was wearing the balaclava because he was cold, and that carrying a gun is standard practice in Johannesburg.
In fact, he was at the bank to see Christine. She is the artist responsible for the “Remembrance Wall,” a memorial to the victims of violent crime in the city. After meeting at the wall, Christine agrees to go on a date with Rob.
After winning a fortune on a scratch card, Rob finds his life under threat and believes that the Lottery Service is trying to murder him to prevent him from claiming his prize. He is forced to hide amongst the city’s underclass.
The film ends with a western style shoot out during which the killer is revealed to be Marius and Christine is killed. Rob reflects on the harsh realities of life in modern South Africa.
Notes
Rix shot the film over the course of nine years in
Johannesburg . [cite web | last = | first = | coauthors = | title = Interview with Rix for 2007Cambridge Film Festival | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = | date = | url = http://www.cambridgefilmfestival.org.uk/news/2007/07/15/interview-tengers//]The term Tengers was coined by Rix himself to refer to residents of
Gauteng province. [cite web | last = | first = | coauthors = | title = Official Tengers website | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = | date = | url = http://www.cambridgefilmfestival.org.uk/films/Tengers/reviews/?SESSIONCFF=1b7ef6bb15bbc4626f30d651c40b646f/]There is no
IMDB page for Tengers. [cite web | last = | first = | coauthors = | title = Internet Movie Database| work = | pages = | language = | publisher = | date = | url = http://www.imdb.com]ee also
*
List of animated feature-length films
*List of stop-motion films References
External links
* [http://www.samoviemag.co.za/reviews/tengers.html Review by SAMovieMag]
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