Wild Is the Wind

This is a powerful and not-soon-forgotten story of murder, corruption, and racial tension in South Africa, with obvious comparisons to similar issues in other countries. Wild is the Wind tells the story of two corrupt police officers in a South African town -- one Black, one White -- who lead an investigation into the brutal murder of a White teenager. At the behest of government officials, solving the murder is the number one priority of the police, as Black residents of the township outside the town question why the murders of those where they live barely register. In a powerful scene among many powerful scenes, you can see the wounds of lingering racial tensions reopen in real time during a town meeting between the police and the citizens. Soon enough, the wounds are out in the open on full display, and it's difficult to watch, but impossible to turn away.

The fact that the two lead characters are corrupt cops who take bribes during traffic stops and have hatched a violent plan to make the money they need to pay off their houses and/or leave town for the big city makes this all the more compelling. Everyone is mired in it, and very few actually benefit from the lingering systemic racism awoken by the incident. What works best about this movie is that everything from the direction to the incredible acting to the story itself serves this idea that the tragedies in this movie -- of which there are many -- are just a small part of a much larger tragedy.