Beauty (2011) - Skoonheid

Beauty (2011) Aka: Skoonheid Release Year: 2011 Country: South Africa, France, Germany Director: Oliver Hermanus Writer: Oliver Hermanus Language: Afrikaans, English Genre: Drama Runtime: 100 min Cast: Deon Lotz, Charlie Keegan Michelle Scott, Albert Maritz Sue Diepeveen, Roeline Daneel Studio: Moonlighting Films, Equation Productions Imdb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1922721/ Available on:

A man leading a double life finds his obsessions leading him in a dark, troubling direction in this drama from South African filmmaker Oliver Hermanus. Francois (Deon Lotz) is a South African businessman in his mid-forties who on the surface seems to be an ordinary, happily married, and respectable citizen. But beneath the surface Francois seethes with resentment; as an Afrikaner, he distrusts and dislikes the blacks who have risen to political power since the end of apartheid, and while he's openly homophobic, he's sexually attracted to men and takes part in periodic group sex sessions with other white, married men. While attending his daughter's wedding, Francois sees Christian (Charlie Keegan), the handsome twenty-something son of a longtime family friend, and he quickly becomes obsessed. Francois pays a visit to Christian's parents to find out more about him, and begins following the younger man as he struggles with his desires. Francois is attracted to Christian, but he also sees in him a man who is comfortable with himself and the world around him, and his lust eventually gives way to a hatred that seems poised to explode into violence. Deon Lotz's performance in Skoonheid (aka Beauty) earned him the Golden Eye Award as Best Actor at the 2011 Zurich Film Festival.