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The Bang Bang Club

  • 20102010
  • RR
  • 1h 46m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
11K
YOUR RATING
Ryan Phillippe, Malin Akerman, Frank Rautenbach, Taylor Kitsch, and Neels van Jaarsveld in The Bang Bang Club (2010)
A drama based on the true-life experiences of four combat photographers capturing the final days of apartheid in South Africa.
Play trailer2:15
1 Video
99+ Photos
BiographyDramaHistory
A drama based on the true-life experiences of four combat photographers capturing the final days of apartheid in South Africa.A drama based on the true-life experiences of four combat photographers capturing the final days of apartheid in South Africa.A drama based on the true-life experiences of four combat photographers capturing the final days of apartheid in South Africa.
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
11K
YOUR RATING
    • Steven Silver
  • Writers
    • Steven Silver
    • Greg Marinovich(based on the book by)
    • João Silva(based on the book by)
  • Stars
    • Ryan Phillippe
    • Malin Akerman
    • Taylor Kitsch
    • Steven Silver
  • Writers
    • Steven Silver
    • Greg Marinovich(based on the book by)
    • João Silva(based on the book by)
  • Stars
    • Ryan Phillippe
    • Malin Akerman
    • Taylor Kitsch
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 39User reviews
    • 78Critic reviews
    • 48Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards

    Videos1

    The Bang Bang Club
    Trailer 2:15
    Watch The Bang Bang Club

    Photos181

    Ryan Phillippe, Frank Rautenbach, Taylor Kitsch, and Neels van Jaarsveld in The Bang Bang Club (2010)
    Ryan Phillippe and Malin Akerman in The Bang Bang Club (2010)
    Taylor Kitsch in The Bang Bang Club (2010)
    Ryan Phillippe and Taylor Kitsch in The Bang Bang Club (2010)
    Ryan Phillippe and Malin Akerman in The Bang Bang Club (2010)
    Ryan Phillippe in The Bang Bang Club (2010)
    Patricia Clarkson at an event for The Bang Bang Club (2010)
    Christopher McDonald at an event for The Bang Bang Club (2010)
    Anna Kendrick at an event for The Bang Bang Club (2010)
    Ryan Phillippe at an event for The Bang Bang Club (2010)
    Scott Glenn at an event for The Bang Bang Club (2010)
    Taylor Kitsch at an event for The Bang Bang Club (2010)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Ryan Phillippe
    Ryan Phillippe
    • Greg Marinovich
    Malin Akerman
    Malin Akerman
    • Robin Comley
    Taylor Kitsch
    Taylor Kitsch
    • Kevin Carter
    Neels van Jaarsveld
    • João
    Frank Rautenbach
    Frank Rautenbach
    • Ken
    Nina Milner
    • Samantha
    Jessica Haines
    • Allie
    Lika Berning
    Lika Berning
    • Vivian
    • (as Lika van den Bergh)
    Kgosi Mongake
    • Patrick
    Russel Savadier
    Russel Savadier
    • Ronald
    Patrick Shai
    Patrick Shai
    • Pegleg
    Alfred Kumalo
    • Alf Khumalo
    • (as Alf Khumalo)
    Craig Palm
    • Amir
    Nick Boraine
    Nick Boraine
    • Colin
    Patrick Lyster
    • Jim
    Khutso Shilakwe
    • K.K.
    • (as Kuutso Shilakwe)
    Vusi Kunene
    Vusi Kunene
    • Petrus Maseko
    Julian Rademeyer
    Julian Rademeyer
    • Cape Town Reporter
      • Steven Silver
    • Writers
      • Steven Silver
      • Greg Marinovich(based on the book by)
      • João Silva(based on the book by)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Kevin Carter's daughter Megan Carter is featured in the bar scene where she turns around and says 'You must be Ken Oosterbroek.' Standing next to her is Kevin Carter's stepdaughter Sian Lloyd.
    • Goofs
      When Greg Marinovich and Joao Silva are reviewing Kevin Carter's film of the vulture and child, the negatives they view through the magnifier are actually halftone images, not normal negatives that one would be examining before publication. (Halftones are the "dotted" images used to print photographs in newspapers and magazines, etc.)
    • Quotes

      Kevin Carter: They're right. All those people who say it's our job to just sit and watch people die. They're right.

    • Crazy credits
      Photos taken by the real photographers, including portraits of one another, are used as a backdrop during the first section of the credits. The taking of some of these photographs is portrayed in the film itself.
    • Connections
      Featured in The Hour: Episode #7.81 (2011)
    • Soundtracks
      Groovin' Jive No. 1
      Written by Noise Khanyile (as Noise Kanyile)

      Performed by Noise Khanyile

    User reviews39

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    7/10
    Interesting, Violent, and Well Scripted.
    Kevin Carter's Pulitzer prize winning photograph is one of those images that gets burned into the back of your mind. It haunts you long after you see it. I saw this photo of the young Sudanese girl, about 10 years after it was taken, and it still fills me with sorrow. It makes you wonder what happened to the poor girl. It makes you question how the world can have both a massive obesity epidemic, and massive global starvation at the same time. It isn't something you can easily forget, and it's the type of image photo journalists spend an entire career searching for.

    In this multi-biography, director Steven Silver tells the story of four friends, all combat photographers in the mid 1990's before the fall of the Apartheid. They tell the story of the Zulu and their tribal warfare all the while photographing the constant death, starvation, and violence that surrounds them, all the while building their camaraderie and forming the Bang Bang Club.

    It's a very well written film and it brings up many issues. Most notably the hypocrisy of the situation, is that these journalists are living a life of comparative wealth and debauchery in this time of strife, and at the same time trying to make a name for themselves by taking photos focused on the very visceral suffering of others. Where the film really shines is in the background and the violence therein. I was quite impressed with the sheer number of extras for most of the fighting scenes. There are a lot of graphic sequences of course, but it's not the violence that makes the film. It's the exploitation of that violence that makes the film so interesting.

    There were a couple of issues I had with the movie. For example, 4 white guys with cameras strapped to their bodies standing in the middle of battles while dodging bullets is certainly unbelievable at times. Yelling "PRESS! PRESS!" doesn't keep you safe in a war-zone. The dialogue is believable for the most part, except when they are joking around in the middle of the battle scenes. I did enjoy Taylor Kitsch's torn and dark portrayal of his character Kevin Carter. Ryan Phillippe does well as prize winning photographer Greg Marinovich, but I thought he was perhaps too good looking to be believable. Compare him to the real Greg Marionovich during the end credits and you'll see what I mean.

    That being said, it's an excellent film and Steven Silver certainly has an eye for very personal story telling.

    7/10
    helpful•6
    1
    • kdavies-69347
    • Apr 5, 2016

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 22, 2011 (South Africa)
      • Canada
      • South Africa
      • Official site (Germany)
      • English
      • Zulu
      • Xhosa
      • Afrikaans
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Johannesburg, South Africa
    • Production companies
      • Foundry Films
      • Instinctive Film
      • Out of Africa Entertainment
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 1 hour 46 minutes
      • Color
      • Dolby Digital

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    Ryan Phillippe, Malin Akerman, Frank Rautenbach, Taylor Kitsch, and Neels van Jaarsveld in The Bang Bang Club (2010)
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