THE STORY – In 1974 Apartheid South Africa, an idyllic summer holiday is derailed when 11-year-old Marnus sets off a chain of events that shatters his family’s carefully maintained facade.
THE CAST – Dawian van der Westhuizen, Hilton Pelser, Maude Sandham, Celeste Matthews Wannenburgh, Wian Carstens, Karoline Watson & Alejandro Goic
THE TEAM – John Trengove (Director/Writer) & Chris Ciancimino (Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 104 Minutes
The title of John Trengove’s domestic drama “The Smell of Apples” speaks to the sweetness of youth and the potential rot masked by the scent of the fresh fruit. A deep exploration of growing up within an insidious system, where the vagaries of youthful indiscretion can lead to unintended violence and repression, this is a fascinating, bold look at life under South Africa’s apartheid system from the perspective of a young boy.
Marnus (played sympathetically and sophisticatedly by Dawian van der Westhuizen) is just old enough to be self-reliant, but young enough to be still thrilled by seaside moments with his parents and spending time with his caring yet stern father named Johan (Hilton Pelser). The idyllicism of the boy’s life, with a doting mother Leonor (Maude Sandham), regular visits to the shore, and the warm embrace and tasty snacks provided by the family’s live-in caregiver Doreen (Celeste Matthews Wannenburgh), feels positively bucolic.
Of course, underneath all there are political and social structures that the young boys is cognizant of but not fully understanding of their impact. Doreen’s nephew has been staying with her, and when Marnus sees him in the main house, he reports this to his parents. Normally not such a big deal, but of course the notion of a Black child entering the home of this white family without permission is anathema within that country’s system, let alone a home being run by a member of the nation’s military. When a fishing rod seems to go missing, the visiting child’s fate is sealed, ripping a seam into the otherwise placid family quilt and opening Marnus’ eyes to the impact and culpability of his actions.
From here, things get very dark indeed, with further secrets and buried anger bursting forth in various forms. The film’s narrative directly ties the perversion of the state’s offensive behavior to more local forms of malevolent, hateful behavior which, despite the obvious resulting emotional impact, does feel at times a little bit like it obfuscates what otherwise would have been a perfectly biting critique of the politics, without the need to make the perpetrators that much more monstrous. In fact, it’s the quotidian actions of the “regular” family whose staid normalcy is an affront to the undercurrents of injustice and political oppression that is the most biting element of the tale, making the more detestable personal actions of the father somehow necessary to reemphasize the appalling political and professional behaviors. It’s a bit of a “hat on a hat” story-wise, and while certain to get the desired reaction of disgust from an audience, that element feels more gratuitous than anything.
At its best, “The Smell of Apples” evokes the likes of recent smashes like “Roma” or “I’m Still Here,” and at times, Trengove and co-writer Chris Ciancimino’s adaptation of Mark Behr’s novel is worthy of those comparisons. However, there’s a tendency to become too overt in the telling, obfuscating some of the more subtle and effective moments with more maudlin and hyperbolic acitons. There’s a balance here that’s not always pulled off effectively, but when the work settles in and has confidence in the audience’s ability to pick up on the more subtle cues, it shines that much more. The result may be mixed, but there’s still plenty to bite into with this tale. “The Smell of Apples” may have the faint whiff of desperation at times, but when it’s unafraid to lean into the more subtle shadings of the family portrait, it manages to satisfy that much more.
