It's a shame, but I don't have much experience with South African cinema. So I had no idea that "Meet the Khumalos" is actually a remake of the 2017 film "Meet the Kandasamys." I guess if you know anything about that film, you probably know what this one is about, but for those unfamiliar, I'll give you a rundown of "Meet the Khumalos" so you can decide whether or not it's worth watching. The film follows two families, the Khumalos and the Sitholes, who are new neighbors but, it seems, also old enemies.
Grace, the Khumalos matriarch, hates Bongi, the new neighbor but her best friend. To make matters worse, their children fall in love and keep their beautiful romance a secret. However, Grace and Bongi soon realize something is fishy and decide to sabotage the relationship instead of talking to their children like polite parents.
Director: Jayan Moodley
Writers: Gillian Breslin, Wendy Gumede
Stars: Ayanda Borotho, Khanyi Mbau, Jesse Suntele
What I enjoyed most about "Meet the Khumalos" is that it devotes a significant amount of time to both the young people's romance and the mothers' conspiracies. The hour-and-a-half film is intense entertainment from start to finish. Starring some of the biggest names in South African cinema, "Meet the Khumalos" represents Zulu culture for those unfamiliar with it, thanks to Netflix. For me, this is the best part of the film.
While on one hand we have the mother and son Khumalo, ready to take on the world with their "modern" ideas, the mother and daughter Sithole are rooted in their culture yet open-minded. I imagine grappling with cultural identity is quite a challenge for young people today, and the film addresses this with great clarity, without giving the impression that one side is better than the other. Now, the story isn't as deep as you might imagine, and one thing I found really lacking was the backstory explaining why the women fought back in the day. It seems like an afterthought rather than the fundamental reason for what's happening. This is a common complaint I have with many current films, with shallow plots and no real thought put into the film's essence. It's as if whoever made it thinks their audience is simply stupid, which isn't the case. However, I can forgive this particular one because it's somewhat detailed in other respects. Sure, it's a comedy, but you can't expect us to get excited about bread when there isn't even butter to go with it.
Despite being in Zulu, the humor comes across well, although at times, the physical humor comes across as quite annoying. But this is just my personal issue with physical comedy. The entire cast elevates the film's basic plot in a charming way. Khanyi Mbau is fantastic as Grace, and you can't help but feel a little annoyed by her. On the other hand, Ayanda Borotho is delightful as Bongi; even with all the shouting and scheming, they make a great duo, one well worth watching. Also, a little warning for ophidiophobes: Netflix will never give you that information!
I think something is lost in translation regarding the subtitles. We all know how terrible Netflix subtitles are, but that doesn't make the movie incomprehensible. If anything, I guess you just have to pay more attention to the Zulu. I also had a slight issue with the movie's pacing. At first, it feels like everything is moving super fast, then halfway through, there's a lot of room for comedy, I guess, and then at the end, it feels like everything is rushing to give us the happy ending we're all looking for. But these are just minor quibbles in the bigger picture. I'm in no way trying to stop you from seeing this movie; I'm just trying to keep your expectations in check in case they get too high.
The visual effects are great, and gosh, I want to live in these houses. There are some really beautiful shots when the couple goes camping (except for the snake, thank you very much), and the costumes are pretty funny too. I especially love how the two female leads look drastically different just by looking at them. The colors scream summer, and it feels like a dose of the vitamins we've been missing with all the saturated color grading we've been using lately.
All in all, if you're looking for a fun, vibrant, humorous, and culturally unique film, I highly recommend "Meet the Khumalos." I love the amount of international cinema we can enjoy sitting at home, so it's only right that we make the most of the situation. It's not prestigious at all, but for a rom-com coming to Netflix in 2025, it certainly offers more than its mediocre English counterparts. Never mind the wave of Netflix rom-coms; it's absolutely diabolical how they think we'll swallow anything with the letters "rom" in it. There are a couple of puns that I devoured, and for that alone, I think it's really funny. But all in all, if you're looking for a heartfelt story and lots of family bonding, I'd recommend avoiding it. If you're just looking for a good time with friends or family, "Meet the Khumalos" might be fine for you. I give it 3 out of 5 stars.
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