Woohooo! And then – ?? A term that I have reserved for Lindiwe on The River, is all I said as I binged on the 6 episodes in one sitting. We need more of these in the African movie industry. Rich content, great actors, and crew – well this is true for most of the episodes but not the first few minutes of the first episode so, hold on tight till after that and you will be rewarded 🙂
The series highlights a lot of what many of us have knitted in the fabric of our hearts and minds; business, family, love, power, second scramble for Africa, African liberation, politics, and leadership.
In this series, our frustrations as Africans are laid bare and beautifully enacted in an eclectic, intense production that traverses the continent.
If you are not watching anything, this is a good place to start – only it will spoil you for any substandard African production. The beauty with this Action movie, is the relatability of it for most Africans, unlike other action movies. This is a must-watch. Watch on Netflix
Watch Queen Sono Trailer
The Story
Queen Sono explores the life of a young South African secret agent looking to put to rest demons from her past as she patiently journeys through life. Each episode takes us through new dramas in her life and ends on an emotional high (or low) leaving you yearning for the next. The plot goes back and forth between present-day, resent past and pre-independence South Africa.
With each recollection, layers of information are peeled off creating new levels of understanding, fear, motivation, and anxiety at the same time.
However, I did not like the unnatural acting and clumsy use of Swahili in Zanzibar. This beginning could stop one from watching further… However, the story moves on pretty fast and by the end of the first episode the high-quality of acting and production is established and one can’t stop click next…
Another annoying thing is the wrong translations to the Swahili subtitles. NETFLIX should get it right or just not translate as often the translation does not make sense at all
The Cast
The cast is well put together. The main cast did a great job and Pearl, Kate, and Vuyo hacked it in each episode. Other than the first few minutes of episode 1 done in Zanzibar where the acting was horrible and Swahili script whack, the rest was pretty cool.
Abigail Kubeka – Mazet3 episodes, 2020
Brendan Sean Murray – Clarke Maxwell1 episode, 2020
Chi Mhende – Miri Dube7 episodes, 2020-2021
Connie Chiume – Nana Rakau3 episodes, 2020
Frank Opperman – Spiro Christopolous3 episodes, 2020
James Ngcobo – President Jeziel Malunga5 episodes, 2020
Jason Cope – von Bassewitz1 episode, 2020
Jonathan Pienaar – Hendrikus Strydom1 episode, 2020
Kate Liquorish – eKaterina Gromova6 episodes, 2020-2021
Kg Mokgadi – Kojo1 episode, 2020
Khathu Ramabulana – Wiliam7 episodes, 2020-2021
Lady Skollie – Safiya Sono4 episodes, 2020
Loyiso Madinga – Fred7 episodes, 2020-2021
Mbali Mlotshwa – Nova5 episodes, 2020-2021
Natasha Loring – Sarah1 episode, 2020
Ntosh Madlingozi – Mandla1 episode, 2020
Otto Nobela – Bulabule6 episodes, 2020
Pearl Thusi – Queen Sono7 episodes, 2020-2021
Raymond Ofula – Julius Magoro1 episode, 2020
Rob van Vuuren – Viljoen6 episodes, 2020
Ronald Mkwanazi – Adam Bosingwa1 episode, 2020
Sechaba Morojele – Dr. Sid Isaacs7 episodes, 2020-2021
Sello Maake Ka-Ncube – Eusebius Gumede1 episode, 2020
Shane John Kruger – Roelof Botha1 episode, 2020
Steven John Ward – Elton / -1 episode, 2020
Tuks Tad Lungu – Moses1 episode, 2020
Vaneshran Arumugam – Ulrich Govender1 episode, 2020
Vuyo Dabula – Sandhu Johnson Magwaza7 episodes, 2020-2021
Technical Construction
The crew knew their job. I loved the score and all aspects of the movie came together perfectly. This as money well spent.
Conclusion
This is a must-watch. Being amongst the first NETFLIX production of African content, think they hacked it and the script though based on South African history pretty much is reflective of the continent’s people in many aspects.
Rating
I would give this an 8/10. It is one of the best African productions I have seen and I certainly look forward to seeing more of Pearl and Vuyo on the screen in the future.
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