There are a few scenarios under which you may find yourself using the film Tsotsi in an examination or assessment. You, or your teacher may perhaps choose the film when given an open ended assignment in a GCSE film assignment for media studies but the most likely circumstance under which you will be using the film is for the WJEC GCSE Film Studies Paper 2, titled ‘Films From Outside Hollywood’ where the film is currently one of the focus films and will remain so until the summer of 2012 at the earliest.
This paper will ask you to consider a number of key study areas and to use the film to demonstrate your knowledge not only of the film but about what the film actually says about these key areas.
You can expect to be asked about:
- The setting of the film. (where it is set, how the setting is represented to us and what the film says about the setting - it is therefore a good idea to have at least some knowledge of that setting, in the case of this film, South African cities and townships)
- The key issues within the film. (there are many in the film including inequality, brotherhood & loyalty, redemption, AIDS and violence)
- The main characters in the film. (you are likely to be asked to pick one or two and consider how they are represented and their main characteristics)
- The narrative and how it unfolds. (you may wish to approach...
