Humour flows naturally

Movie Review: Broken Promises 4-Ever

Rating: 8/10

Review: Fakir Hassen

LOCAL director Kumaran Naidu continues to excel as he pursues his dream of movie-making with this fourth edition of the popular franchise that started with cheap equipment and a largely volunteer cast and crew about 15 years ago.

Buoyed now by the crucial funding, distribution support, and especially access to the mainstream cinema groups in the country that are required for any filmmaker to produce and expose audiences to high quality movies, Naidu, teaming up with Fadeen Mia, has made a film that is sure to pull in huge crowds when it opens in 15 cinemas across the country on July 27.

The story with its uniquely Durban Indian idiosyncrasies will resonate particularly with these audiences but adopts a style that will appeal to everyone.

The humour that flows continuously from one scene to the next is natural and believable – something that could easily be found in any household where tensions exist between young couples from different faiths falling in love and the often-stereotyped attitudes of parents and other family members opposing this.

Naidu guides his cast to tenderly address issues of homosexual relationships, living together without marriage, and other societal changes that are frequently frowned upon in the Indian community without causing any offence at any stage. In the process, subtle lessons about tolerance and adaptation to the changing societal lifestyle, and even taboos on speaking about them, emerge through humour that is not forced by resorting to slapstick. All the cast members deliver their roles well, but standing out are the two seniors – Kogie Naidoo playing Amsugi, the matriarch of a family with set ways and her more Bohemian sister Bommi, played by Rani Pillay.

Naidu said at the launch that he had promised to give up on the Broken Promises franchise after the third film, but huge demand from fans had made him break that promise. He also paves the way for a Broken Promises 5 in the climax, so we are likely to see the talent of this team again.

With his earlier products already known in greater Africa, Naidu is likely to also have satellite channels chasing him for rights to screen it soon.