The Borderline

The Borderline is one of only a handful of films to come out of Zambia, the most notable being the internationally acclaimed 'I Am Not a Witch'. I really wanted to like this film - I love film noir and neo-noir, and African cinema.

Unfortunately this film is a complete mess. The plot - in so far as I understood it - has something to do with a Lusaka private eye investigating a murder in the bush, which has something to with some poachers, one of whom is in league with a witch doctor, and some incident from the private dick's childhood involving a local girl with an eye patch. However there are so many flashbacks, abrupt transitions, random characters coming in and out, bizarre dialogue, numerous random deaths, belaboured symbolisms and non sequiturs that it just ends up making no sense whatsoever. Also the whole thing is backed with this incredibly annoying synthy keyboard soundtrack which just kills what little tension and emotional resonance the film has.

Some of the shots of the Zambian countryside were nice, and parts of the noir-y opening 10 minutes were somewhat intriguing. But that's not enough to sustain a 90 minute run time. Avoid.