Catch a Fire tells the true story of Patrick Chamusso (Derek Luke), a South African terrorist who joins the African National Congress (ANC) only because he is falsely accused of already having done so. Though most of the film poses as a fictionalized account of true events, the film's final minutes feature documentary footage of Chamusso meeting Luke and talking briefly about his life today. Sadly, this documentary interview was by far the most captivating, insightful and moving part of the entire film.
The rest of the movie is very entertaining but highly predictable. Robbins (Bull Durham) plays Nic Vos, an ill-defined national security detective. It's unclear if he's supposed to be the bad guy or the likable supporting character who forms an unlikely bond with the main character. Luke's character also lacks depth; his actions are always motivated by a single, explicit, unambiguous idea, creating a one-dimensional person. Luke and Robbins (with a South African accent) give strong performances, but they're not Oscar-worthy.
The film's main problem is that it claims to tackle serious issues that are as important today as they were during apartheid, but always comes up short. Chamusso decides to join the ANC for personal and selfish reasons, rather than the bigger issues of right and wrong that the ANC fought for. The film could have addressed what terrorism really means and what it takes to create a true terrorist, but instead it sells out these big questions in favor of simple, clear-cut answers.
The testimony of the real Chamusso at the end of the film proves that the actual answers behind terrorism are not so clear-cut. Catch a Fire is very entertaining, and will probably make some money, but it had the potential to be much more. Sometimes the truth can be stronger than fiction.
