The Film
In Blitz Patrollie, we follow Rummy Augustine and Ace Dikolobe, two cops, partners, and guys with good heart. The two are good guys, albeit a little lacking in the worldly-wise ways of everyone else. They stumble upon a huge drug bust (along with the humorous sidekick team of Braam and David, two snipers who are trying very hard to be the cool, knowledgeable sniper team, but in actual fact probably need some training and exercise).
The main characters might all seem like they are bundling their way through things, but there is a sense of being ‘in Africa’ as a cop. Things are done a little different here, but the heart is in the right place.
The more their boss Ledwaba (Kagiso Lediga) tries to stay on top of things, and the more station head Lappies Botha tries to rein in Rummy and Ace, the more they stumble upon more and more information on the big drug ring that is active right under their very noses.
The humour, although slightly caricatured, is not forced, and steers clear of the slapstick that some South African films are known for.
Blitz Patrollie is a good laugh, with no thinking needed. It’ll bring some entertainment to your day.
Blitz Patrollie is out now on disc in South Africa.
Disc And Bonus Features
The disc is encoded at a decent bitrate, with no visible artefacts while viewing. It can upscale via software to HD without any hassle. Audio does not seem to make use of the surrounds, but does provide a wide front stage to the on-screen action.
There are a few bonus features on the Blitz Patrollie DVD, including cinematic trailer, a behind the scenes that provides some additional insight into life on set, and the process of creating the film, and the various locations, and an audio commentary by directors Kagiso Lediga and Andrew Wessels.
The audio commentary carries with it a wealth of information about how the film was made, the mindset behind the directors, and why certain aspects of the film played out the way they did. The directors share a passion for the film medium, evident by their desire to show the best film possible, but also display their knowledge of film when speaking of some of their ideas that had to be dropped in order to make the end product more enjoyable for us as an audience.
Audio commentaries are always great for the aficionado audience, and for budding actors and filmmakers alike.
