…… BILLY SUTER…….
SOME award-winning movies and a fun-sounding local drama involving a competition between game rangers are among new titles lined up for the Showmax streaming platform in September. Trailers for all these titles are to be found on YouTube.
Among movies headed for Showmax are Oscar favourites The Brutalist and Conclave, while the South African film set to prove popular is Khaki Fever, with a cast including Christopher Jafta, Ilse Klink and Trix Vivier.
The Brutalist, streaming from September 5, won three Oscars – including Best Actor for Adrien Brody – and three Golden Globes, including Best Picture and Best Director (for Brady Corbet). Both Felicity Jones and Guy Pearce were Oscar-nominated for their supporting roles.
The film follows László Toth, a Hungarian Jewish architect, who, after surviving the Holocaust, emigrates to America to start a new life. He does so while awaiting the arrival of his wife and niece, both of whom remain trapped in Eastern Europe following the war.
The promise of the American Dream proves to be illusory as his stature and reputation as a successful architect back in Budapest do not easily translate to his new blue blood Pennsylvania surroundings.
Streaming from Monday, September 8, Conclave sees The Pope dead and his throne vacant. When Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is tasked with leading one of the world’s most secretive and ancient events, selecting a new pope, he finds himself at the centre of a web of conspiracies and intrigue that could shake the very foundation of the Catholic Church.
Conclave won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay earlier this year, and was up for eight Academy Awards, including Picture of the Year. Directed by Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front), the film stars Tucci, John Lithgow, Isabella Rossellini and Lucian Msamati.
Streaming from Friday, September 5, Khaki Fever tells of a group of game rangers who set up a challenge to see who can hook up with the most tourists during a season. The prize? The title of being the King of Khaki, as well as the losers’ collective tips. The challenge? Outsmarting Anel, the conservative lodge manager, who has made it clear that anyone caught fraternising with guests will be fired on the spot.
SAFTA-nominee Christopher Jafta (currently on stage in Johannesburg as the Elvis-like Pharoah in the touring Joseph musical) gets top billing as Daniel, with Francois Jacobs (Kaalgat Karel) stealing the show, and his first Silwerskerm award, as Albie. Liam Bosman and Ilse Klink were also nominated for Khaki Fever at the annual Silverskerm film festival, with Bosman also up in the TV category for Een Keer Om Die Som and Klink winning for Nerêns, Noord-Kaap.
Also look out for 2025 Silwerskerm nominees Anja Taljaard and Trix Vivier (both in Juffrou X), singer Abel Knobel, Sean Brebnor (Getroud Met Rugby), Izette Blignaut (Binnelanders) and Juanita de Villiers (Reënboogrant).
Khaki Fever, which sold out its premiere at Silwerskerm, is the second comedy from director Brett Michael Innes, building on the success of Daryn’s Gym, which competed at Rotterdam. Innes has won the SAFTA for Best Film twice, for Sink and Fiela Se Kind, and wrote this year’s Silwerskerm Audience Prize winner, My F*k Marelize. He also produced the Best Film winner, The Heart Is a Muscle.
Among other titles of note on Showmax in September is The Unbreakable Boy, streaming from Sunday, September 21. In this drama, a couple, Scott and Teresa, learn that their son, Austin, is both autistic and has brittle bone disease, making them worry for the boy’s future. But with Scott’s growing faith and Austin’s incredible spirit, they become “unbreakable”, finding joy, gratitude and courage, even in the most trying times.
People’s Choice nominee Zachary Levi (aka Shazam) stars as the father battling addiction, with Emmy-nominee Meghann Fahy (Sirens, The White Lotus, The Bold Type) as his wife.
As Austin, Jacob Laval (The Plot Against America) won the 2025 Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a Feature Film: Leading Teen Artist, while writer-director Jon Gunn won Heartland Film’s 2025 Truly Moving Picture Award.
Finally, don’t miss Thelma, streaming from Monday, September 22. Oscar-nominee June Squibb plays a feisty, 93-year-old grandmother who gets conned by a phone scammer. Accompanied by an ageing friend (Richard Roundtree in his final performance) and his motorised scooter, she sets out on a treacherous quest across Los Angeles to reclaim what was taken from her.
Thelma earned its star – who did most of her own stunts – the Best Actress in an Action Movie award at the 2025 Critics Choice Super Awards. The stacked cast includes The White Lotus alumni Fred Hechinger and Parker Posey, as well as Malcolm McDowell, Clark Gregg and Nicole Byer.
Thelma has won 11 awards so far and was nominated for Best Comedy at the 2025 Critics Choice Awards.
.....SoSuterBill..... 