24 February 2013 | MartinHafer

8 | I am happy I saw this now and not last year--and it's very compelling viewing.

I am very happy I watched this film now and not last year when I went to South Africa (including Gautang). Once in the country, I was surprised at what a polar society it was--with the very rich and the mega-poor. But I was also amazed at how dangerous parts of the country were--and with how safe and beautiful the rest of it was. Had I seen this film, I might have just stayed home--and I am glad I didn't. Despite possibly scaring you out of going there to visit, I do strongly recommend this film--especially since most outside of the country have no idea what life is like there.



This documentary is about how overwhelmed the emergency services is in the province of Gautang in South Africa--particularly around Johannesburg and Pretoria. With among the highest murder, rape and HIV rates in the world, you do wonder how this nation will survive against such odds. And, incidentally, many of the EMS workers in the film wonder the same thing. With very few ambulances, the rich and middle class living like prisoners within compounds, rape alarms on women and a system overwhelmed with not just taking care of the natives but a HUGE number of illegals, there are LOTS of things that make the future of South Africa something that worries many South Africans.



Through the course of this film, you follow several EMS workers as they go on calls in these towns. Because this is real, the footage is a bit rough--very bloody but also very low quality. I can forgive the grainy footage because of the conditions in which the film was made--though I don't know why all the archival footage was so washed out.



A few notes about the film: When they refer to 'blacks' and 'coloureds' in the film, they are referring to black people and those of mixed race respectively. 'Joburg' is the common way folks refer to Johannesburg. Afrikaans is one of the most common language in South Africa and originated from Dutch. And, things are A LOT BETTER outside Gautang.