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My housemate heard ‘lesbian film’ and decided to stay awake to watch it with me, eagerly anticipating a sex-scene. For that reason, she was sorely disappointed, writes Georgia Rooney.

I had heard nothing about this film at all and so I watched it with a completely open mind; I didn’t expect it to make me feel what I did. It seems I have some bizarre Catholic guilt about making any fun of this movie, probably because it is set in 1950’s South Africa in the thick of apartheid. The lesbian love story is weaved into the bigger picture of how the political system was pulling people apart on the basis of race and gender.

The lesbians only seem to triumph because they are able to disguise their relationship as a friendship. This wasn’t an option for black character Jacob who almost embarks on a relationship with a white woman; the indignities of how that relationship would have to be conducted are immediately apparent and impossible to ignore. It is really heartbreaking to watch him walk away from possibly his last chance at love.

The guilt resurfaces when I think about the splatterings of domestic violence and the treatment of black people. I have to separate these issues from the bits of the film that made me laugh; moments that most straight people would probably wonder what the hell I was laughing at.

Amina is an unconventional rebel who refuses to conform. Her family history has given her an insight into female oppression and she therefore refuses to play the patriarchal game of marriage, children, and ultimately female fashion. In the comfort of her baggy trousers, shirts and a floppy hat, Amina runs her own café. When customer Miriam sees her for the first time she is curiously attracted to Amina’s outlandish eccentricity. Miriam is subconsciously influenced to question her status in her own life.

The character Omar, Miriam’s husband, quite effectively demonstrates the hypocrisy which emanates throughout the entire hierarchy of oppression at that time. As an Indian man, in South Africa, he is oppressed, and yet he has black servants. As a husband, he is also the oppressor. When Miriam starts to question the set-up of their life together he struggles with having to justify his rules – especially when living with the guilt of his adultery.

These flaws in their marriage provide fertile ground for Amina who falls for Miriam, and not unrequitedly. It is hardly surprising that Miriam falls for Amina too. She helps people who nobody else will help, she gardens and she can drive. The woman is amazing. She is also really quite attractive. I found her bizarrely familiar and I think you will have the same experience. She reminded me of a strange mix of a combination of L Word characters and other acquaintances of my own.

If you are at a point in life where you can still enjoy watching individualistic, strong, opinionated women stand up for what they believe in (albeit with a few cheesy one-liners) then I would recommend giving this film a chance. If you have a bit of self-loathing, internalised homophobia going on, you might find Amina just a little bit too annoying (probably because she reminds you of yourself 10 years ago, or your ex).

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