U-Carmen Ekhayelitsha

2005

2 hr. 6 min.

Musical

Drama

Romance

List

95%

21 Reviews

Tomatometer

68%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

In this update of the classic opera, cigarette factory worker Carmen (Pauline Malefane) wounds her co-worker Pinki (Ruby Mthethwa) during a fight and then uses promises of a future rendezvous to convince police sergeant Jongikhaya (Andile Tshoni) to let her go free. The devout Jongikhaya, lonely and crippled with guilt about killing his brother as a child, falls under Carmen's spell. When Carmen maintains her callously flirtatious ways, Jongikhaya's jealousy drives him to murderous ends.

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Critics Consensus

A vibrant hybrid that transplants a classic story to a rich new setting, U-Carmen breathes fresh life into its timeless tale while honoring its central themes.

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Audience Member

This seems like the kind of thing I would be all over: a click language translation of an opera. But something about it just doesn't work for me. I suspect it may be Carmen itself, and not the reinvention.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/19/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Should have done it as a contemporary African hip hop opera. Probably more peeps would appreciated it more. To me, it's still a very splendid production for what it was.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/10/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I enjoyed this movie despite not liking the opera carmen.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/17/23

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Audience Member

The only reason melodrama of this sort works at the opera is because its the freakin' opera. EVERYTHING is larger than life and ridiculous. This film's fatal error is depicting the melodrama in an extremely realist style, complete with hand-held cameras. The result is that I feel I'm watching neither a spectacle nor a depiction of real life.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/23/23

Full Review

Audience Member

One of the most brilliant and fresh versions of Bizet's opera "Carmen" I have ever seen! If you just keep in mind that the action occurs in the late 20th century South Africa and Carmen is a passionate woman living in a Cape Town slum district called Khayelitsha, the remaining elements of the plot are not very distant to the original text. Surprisingly, the result is an exotic and colorful show, enhanced with superb and powerful black voices. A great discovery!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/02/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I love opera and I love when opera's timeless stories are well-translated into novel settings (my favourites are Peter Sellars' Mozart series)-- this brilliantly sung Carmen, in the Xhosa language, and weaving spoken dialogue into Bizet's music, set in a South African township, is utterly compelling and gripping-- beautifully acted, full of strong and mesmerizing faces, it celebrates the strength, turbulence and sensuality of modern African communal life.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/13/23

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Mark Dornford-May

Director

Pauline Malefane

Carmen

Andile Tshoni

Sgt. Jongikhaya

Andiswa Kedama

Amanda

Ruby Mthethwa

Pinki

Zintle Mgole

Faniswa

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Elizabeth Weitzman

New York Daily News

[Director] Dornford-May deftly balances the details of his setting with the universality of his themes, exploring every dusty corner of a village thrumming with tension between patriarchal leaders and strong-willed women.

Rated: 3.5/4

Mar 30, 2007

Full Review

Matt Zoller Seitz

New York Times

No one can know whether Bizet would have approved of the movie musical U-Carmen e-Khayelitsha. But you suspect that he would have admired the filmmakers' gall.

Rated: 4/5

Mar 28, 2007

Full Review

V.A. Musetto

New York Post

A vivacious film that is a treat for eyes and ears.

Rated: 3/4

Mar 28, 2007

Full Review

Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

As rich and captivating and multi-faceted as the character on which it is based.

Rated: 4.0/4.0

Sep 26, 2020

Full Review

Prairie Miller

WBAI Web Radio

Central to an expression of new female South African pride, is the lovely Pauline Malefane as Carmen, whose astonishing vocal power embodies both feminine grace and charm, along with bold, militant proletarian fire.

Aug 11, 2007

Full Review

Anton Bitel

Film4

Carmen finds a new home in a South African shantytown, lending the nation her powerful voice for the new freedoms of the post-apartheid era.

Jun 15, 2007

Full Review

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Synopsis

In this update of the classic opera, cigarette factory worker Carmen (Pauline Malefane) wounds her co-worker Pinki (Ruby Mthethwa) during a fight and then uses promises of a future rendezvous to convince police sergeant Jongikhaya (Andile Tshoni) to let her go free. The devout Jongikhaya, lonely and crippled with guilt about killing his brother as a child, falls under Carmen's spell. When Carmen maintains her callously flirtatious ways, Jongikhaya's jealousy drives him to murderous ends.

Director: Mark Dornford-May
Executive Producer: Ross Garland
Screenwriter: Mark Dornford-May, Charles Hazlewood, Andiswa Kedama, Pauline Malefane
Production Co: Spier Films
Genre: Musical, Drama, Romance
Original Language: Xhosa
Release Date (DVD): Mar 1, 2007
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital