Jump the Gun (film)

Jump the Gun is a 1996 South African film directed by Les Blair for Channel Four Films.[1][2] The film follows six diverse, working class individuals as they try and establish themselves in the newly democratic South Africa. Les Blair's quintessentially British Kitchen sink realism is applied to a South African context. The film stars Baby Cele, Lionel Newton, and Michele Burgers amongst others. Characters were built from the ground up with South African actors by using improvisation.

Jump the Gun
Directed byLes Blair
Written byLes Blair
Produced byIndra de Lanerolle
StarringBaby Cele
Lionel Newton
Michele Burgers
Thulani Nyembe
Rapulana Seiphemo
Danny Keogh
CinematographySeamus McGarvey
Edited byOral Norrie Ottey
Music byJoe Nina
Production
company
Release date
1996
Running time
124
CountriesSouth Africa
United Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

The film won the Chicago International Film Festival award in 1997 for best film. [3]

Plot Summary

Set in Johannesburg, the film follows the tangled lives of six very different working-class characters, formerly kept apart by apartheid and now all striving to succeed in the new "rainbow nation". United by their common insecurities, both physical and financial, the film follows their struggle to discover their niche in this brave new world where opportunity beckons, but violence is always lurking.[4]

Cast
  • Baby Cele as Gugu, an ambitious singer looking to make it in the big city. She befriends Thabo and Bazooka to jumpstart her career.
  • Lionel Newton as Clinton van Rooyen, a frequently drunk misfit who doesn't quite fit in the recently diversified South Africa. He starts a relationship with Minnie.
  • Michele Burgers as Minnie, a hooker who picks up clients at the bar Clinton frequents. She falls for him.
  • Thulani Nyembe as Bazooka, the film's villain who attempts to dominate Gugu and corrupt Thabo.
  • Rapulana Seiphemo as Thabo, an earnest band manager who tries to give Gugu a shot at stardom.
  • Danny Keogh as J.J., the owner of the bar.
  • Marcel van Heerden as Johnny Fouché.
  • Nomsa Nene as Sis Buleng.
  • Grace Mahlamba as Puti.
  • Joe Nina as Henry.
  • John Simon Jones as Gun shop owner.
  • Sam Mofokeng as Oupa.
  • Fana Mokoena as Man in shacks.
  • Michael Ketoa as Boy in gun shop.
  • Themba Ndaba as Jewellery shop robber.
  • Patrick Ndlovu as Sello.
  • Francois Stemmet as Party Host.

References
  1. Variety Review: ‘Jump The Gun’ Derek Elley MARCH 1, 1997 "Jump the Gun" is an ironic look at contempo South African society, seen through the eyes of a group hanging out in Johannesburg's underbelly.
  2. Blandine Stefanson, Sheila Petty Directory of World Cinema Africa 2015 1783203919 "... cinematographer: Seamus McGarvey Production designer: David Barkham music: Joe Nina editor: Oral Norrie Ottey ... Critique :Jump the Gun is often overlooked in surveys of post-apartheid film, but in its easy-going way it is a significant film in the cultural landscape of South Africa's fledgling democracy. It might lack the gloss and high-profile cast of Darrell Roodt's Cry, the Beloved Country (1995), but it is a far more authentic representation of South African identities in transition.."
  3. Jump the Gun - IMDb, retrieved 4 April 2023
  4. Jump the Gun (1997) - Plot - IMDb, retrieved 23 March 2023


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