Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

(an undercover cop and his partner risk their careers to cash in on a one time robbery). As mentioned before, this is like a reverse remake of reservoir dogs since it's foreign, but it's better than that movie since it's faster paced, a lot more violent, has more action, and you actually see the botched robbery (they rob an armored truck in this one though). the heist itself is an awesome scene, and it would've been cool if the police showed up and skroef opened fire on them and a bloody shootout ensued between the group of robbers and the cops. anyway, avenged is a great crime thriller full of hardcore action and suspense that heist movie junkies will definitely like. something I wanted to point out is that it had somewhat of a very weird color filter, but then again, lock, stock, and two smoking barrels had one too so it didn't bother me. I'd say avenged is my third favorite heist flick with firestorm and the town being in first and second place

I agree to some of the other reviews, this B picture from South Africa is a great time waster, very entertaining, pleasant to watch. I am surprised that this feature mostly played by black actors was made by a white director. But why not, after all?There are here some sub characters very effective to appreciate and, most of all, there are not love story scheme for sissies; except maybe the tiny one for some supporting characters, between the gang leader's daughter and her lover. That's all. This movie starts like an authentic noir flick, with borderline cops, heats on the edge...Very promising atmosphere indeed. And the action sequences, for instance the armored truck heist, are bloody at the most. Speaking of this, I think that the slow motion armored car guards murders - in the Sam Pekinpah's style - were some kind of useless. Purely gratuitous,but that's my own opinion. And also speaking of the armored truck guards, I loved the short scene where the two of them appear in the movie, after nearly more than a hour, and start to speak of themselves. I first thought they would have an important part afterwards...But I was wrong. SPOILERS BELOW, BEWARE... Those two ordinary supporting characters die only a couple of minutes after being presented to the audience, those characters for whom this same audience may start feeling some empathy. Unfortunately, the whole film was wiped out by a happy ending very not appropriate for this kind of scheme.I won't even speak of the sequence when you have the feeling to watch a RESERVOIR DOGS rip off.

The Set UpAfter their superior screws them over a deserving reward (R200 000) after their celebrated bust, Chili gets his motivation to join a crime gang on a once off tip because the government doesn't appreciate hardworking policemen, and be on the other side of law.For balance purposes the movie has Gugu who's is black female dating Stakes, a Cape Flat native. This is a cool and interesting side story. It also has Warren, who's a boere guy in race sensitive country.The Greedy Cheese GobblersHumor kicks in when Chili joins the team a while after they have started the briefing. Commenting that he didn't know that they were starting on a 'white man's time.' Of course referring to Warren and his race tendency. The chemistry between the gobblers flowed through their slangy (which had Afrikaans) conversation. Everyone knew who they were and what they were doing.Gugu and his prison-tattooed, coloured lover betray the gang after the score is completed. As soon as they get back to the joint they start an eye conversation as they head out to count the money. When Shoes noticed that the two lovers where more connected than everyone else, he feared that they might be onto something and he was right.The RatSkroef played his part beautifully when he wanted to prove that there was indeed a rat amongst them. All his ideas where quickly calculated with ease. When Chili and his partner planned to get Skroef into custody because he was a threat, it worked against them but worked perfectly for the thug.When he presents his proof to the team leader, Mambane, we all wanted to see who the proof was. Skroef was so smart and dedicated that after Mambane found the suspect's phone he suggested that they call the numbers on his log. This is classic tension build up because all the mobile gadgets are in one place so there's no running away from the truth.Chili didn't give up his identity because they would be both killed should he try and save his partner. So he took a risk and we saw the story unfold.When he is put in the dungeon, Chili arms Shoes with a sharp object - the one that will later save him from a grenade that is thrown in by Skroef to eliminate him.The HeistThe use of AK's makes the thriller feel well polished because it's the ultimate war gun. The stunts are so cheap and possible which makes them surprisingly interesting. The turn of events is overwhelming. It's a combination of surprise and fear and the action is aesthetically pleasing and satisfying.Production DesignThe props used in this film were literally easy and cheap because the actors only used what they had. Which was little than most common thrillers. No fancy sets or pretty set designers. The closet. The dungeon. The sharp object. The roadmap and the miniatures. Also the distortion used in the building was correct because of its unrefined stylization.The director took advantage on the deserted building because it seems as if the actors get to decide for themselves where to go or hide if they flee, giving us the tour of the building with a justified reason. The film score thumps with your heart rate as is eases us into the scene. Even the heist itself is not complicated. No inflated or amplified stunts were required or even necessary because the story backed on drama instead of action. No senseless killings either.The subtitles move around the screen and are not traditional. They are even shortened and straight to the point almost like spoken word.The DialogueSkroef is impolite and foul-mouthed. He is the most noted. The dialogue has a funky taste to it. It's clear that using the indigenous languages made this film what it is because that's where the humour came from. The dialogue is cheesy and it reeked authenticity and hard to get over.

This is a good story about two underpaid undercover cops trying to do the right thing while surrounded by corruption.It was a little slow and hard to follow at the beginning and seemed to jump around a bit, but the story does develop well and has some twists and turns that keep it interesting and entertaining right to the end. Does contain graphic violence, not unlike most movies in this genre.Although the storyline is quite different, the pace and presentation of the movie reminded me a little of "Training Day" and although I'm not usually a big fan of jerky camera work, they made good use of it in this movie to really draw you into some of the action.