Everyday Activist - The Shore Break (MLJFF 2015)

Posted on Thursday, November 12, 2015 at 08:00 PM

The Shore Break

Movie Review by Everyday Activist X CalgaryMovies.com

Please pay no attention to this film’s LAME description; “Featuring arresting cinematography, beautiful sand animation, and original music from sensational Ntombethongo, The Shore Break delivers a visually and emotionally riveting story of two cousins fighting over a proposed mining development in traditional tribal lands.” After watching The Shore Break, a better description is something like “Watch family tensions spillover into the political justice arena as Australian multinational promises jobs with its proposed strip mine which inevitably tears apart families and threatens to maul the beautiful African landscape”. I have a big family and to witness one side pitted against another to the point where people are thrown in jail because they have different values, is unthinkable. This movie talks about two sides of political games played when foreigners smell money. The players just happen to be related.

It’s the typical story of a mine promising jobs, roads and electricity to a seemingly “backwards” region and the citizens needing to figure out the pros and the cons of development. During this process, separate factions have formed within the community as well as within the broader political landscape. The King loses his position due to his opposition to the mine, which goes against tribal beliefs as only the people can replace the King. In the community, two cousins fight on opposite sides of the debate. One is a smooth talking businessman and the other is a tour guide turned activist, who states she won’t be the first to die for the land she loves. Her ancestors have gone before her protecting their home.

While these may sound like dramatic sentiments, the pro mining group consists of a bunch of corrupt bullies wanting the mine to run in order to line their pockets. People standing in opposition to them tended to end up dead; however, the community has fended off the mine for now. They understand what so many people don’t. You can’t eat money. The mine would devastate the landscape, poison the water and create dust everywhere; forget about the health impacts. The mining community where I grew up had higher instances of multiple sclerosis and cancer than the average population.

The Shore Break is part of the Marda Loop Justice Film Festival 2015 and will screen at the John Dutton Theatre on Wednesday, November 18th, 2015 at 7:00 PM. Don Ray from the University of Calgary will facilitate the discussion. Ray’s experiences in apartheid era South Africa led him down his life’s path as an academic, with a focus in African politics. Extensive academic publications include African political structures, chief – state relationships, politics of development and associated human rights issues. 

Calgary Showtimes: The Shore Break >