The Bang Bang Club

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Cast

Ryan Phillippe
as Greg Marinovich

Taylor Kitsch
as Kevin Carter

Malin Akerman
as Robin Comley

Frank Rautenbach
as Ken Oosterbroek

Neels VanJaarsveld
as Joao Silva

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Critic Reviews for The Bang Bang Club

Audience Reviews for The Bang Bang Club

• Feb 09, 2013

  I have read that the book was better than the film...that being said, I haven't read this book. So, I am not biased. This biodrama film was rivoting. You couldn't help but get involved with each character, and the risks that they took to document the tragic violence in South Africa. The cinematography was spot on, the acting was really good, and the script was well-written. I enjoyed this....
  Cynthia S Super Reviewer
• Oct 11, 2012

  "The Bang Bang Club" starts with a radio interview in 1994, giving photojournalist Kevin Carter(Taylor Kitsch) a chance to think back a few years to when colleague Greg Marinovich(Ryan Phillippe) first made his presence known, at the scene of a violent clash near a township in Soweto, South Africa. Greg ends up going the extra mile by venturing to a nearby hostel which a local boy has informed is 'a shortcut to heaven.' Those words almost prove phophetic for a minute when he is pursued until he impresses the town's leader with his words that he wants to get their story, too. And then almost wishes he had not when he gets to witness a man being cut down in the street in front of him. Suitably impressed with his photographs and bravado, The Star photo editor Robin Comley(Malin Akerman) brings him onboard as a freelancer, before he asks her out for dinner. Based on a true story, "The Bang Bang Club" is an absorbing look at war photographers and the dangers they face. Complicating matters is when they become the news themselves. What the movie is interested in more than anything else, is the haunting photographs they produce. While the movie has a neat way with building a scene from peace to conflict to violence, it can also be patient enough to just leave the camera on a distraught father. So as you can see the story is more downbeat than one would expect, set during the dying days of Apartheid which the movie provides a couple of new angles on. On the other hand, I do not think we are seeing the full force of South African government censorship of the time, even as it is implied that the authorities approved of stories of black on black violence to advance its agenda, leaving non-approved photos to be sold overseas where, as Robin puts it, is where the real money is.
  Walter M Super Reviewer
• Aug 25, 2012

  Ryan Phillippe, Taylor Kitsch, and Malin Akerman's performances are the best reasons to watch this film. They all shine. The film kind of reminded me of movies like Blood Diamond, The Hunting Party, The Last King of Scottland, and Harrison Flowers. One major negative was that the pacing was off. Still worth checking out for the performances.
  Sol C Super Reviewer
• Jul 04, 2012

  Not bad. Not bad at all particularly because we have a pair of international stars Ryan Phillippe and Malin Akerman and we're dumping them into the middle of a very South African film requiring them to take on the accents and habits of the natives. They perform in the end and it results in a good if not great film.
  

  John B Super Reviewer

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