Liefling

A Fun-Filled Afrikaans Musical

Starring: Lika Berning, Bobby van Jaarsveld, Elize Cawood, Rouel Beukes, Marlee van der Merwe, Paul du Toit
Year:  2010
Running Time:  114 minutes

The movie opens with a sepia-filtered sequence of scenes from the past and someone singing one of the most emotive Afrikaans songs of all time, Kinders van die Wind, which evokes a sense of nostalgia.  The song is finished by an old man sitting in a boat (with Liefling written on the side), who proceeds to contemplate the age-old question: what are we searching for?  Is it love?  Is it happiness? This question is also the central focus of the movie, with each of the characters searching for both while spontaneously bursting into song and/or dance as they go.

Cut to a Glee-esque dance and song sequence as a group of university students celebrate the end of the year and the start of the December holidays (ooh la la la!).  We spot a bleached-blonde Bobby van Jaarsveld and fresh-faced Willem Botha (before they both become thirst traps on Insta) among the dancing students, some of whom are headed to Hartbeespoort (a popular resort town in the North West Province of SA) for their vacation.

Among them is Liefling, the movie's protagonist, and granddaughter of the old man in the boat (the two of them sing a bizarre duet about life while standing in a tree).  Then there is the spoilt little rich girl, Melanie, and her minions (who are reminiscent of the Plastics from Mean Girls but with unfortunate bangs).  Melanie is on the hunt for some D, specifically that of cutie Jan, who has two friends named Pieter and Gert (I mean it doesn't get more Afrikaans than that). Jan, however, has his emerald green eyes on Liefling, which leads to some plotting and plenty of side eye from Melanie.

Liefling also has a gay bestie in a wheelchair, the unfortunately nicknamed Doepie, and a plain girl who is mad about the buns of local chef, Lucci. Liefling confides in them about her infatuation with Jan (in her bedroom which has fabulous disco lights and lasers should they feel the need to break into a song and dance routine - which they do).  Their song ends with a messy pillow fight which poor Katy, the domestic, will have to clean.  So inconsiderate.

After a few dates and some frolicking in a pool, Liefling wakes up one morning to tell her mother (played by the legendary Sonja Herholdt) "sy wil 'n man hê" (she wants a husband) - move fast much?  Then again if the boerseun in question is Bobby VJ, best to put a ring on that asap.  Meanwhile, Jan is literally jumping for joy (in a tight pair of jeans) and singing Neem My Op Vlerke in his grandmother's kitchen.

The film features a plethora of beloved Afrikaans liedjies and cameos by Afrikaans singers and personalities (like Riaan Cruywagen on the TV, asking Liefling if she wants a boerseun).   Tannie Carika appearing as a Ray Ban wearing traffic officer while Bobby sings Hoeka Toeka in the sidecar of a motorcycle is gay rights.  Kurt Darren makes an appearance for a lame proposal to his girlfriend, Anna, and then later for a literal interpretation of his song Kaptein, when he captains a yacht on the Hartbeespoort dam.   On the same yacht, a posse of hot young boys serenade Katryn, Melanie's lush of a mother, played by Sylvaine Strike.

After a complete overreaction to seeing Melanie kissing Jan on the yacht, Liefling packs her bags and heads for a snow-covered Switzerland (where she reunites with Thinus, a handsome guy from her past), leaving a flat-haired Jan to weep and snivel into his spieltjie spieltjie.  Jan sends her a letter (do they not have e-mail in Switzerland?), saying how much he misses her so handsome Thinus buys her a ticket to go back to SA and she's like: k thanks bye.

An Afrikaans musical must have a happy ending so (spoiler alert) everyone ends up with the person they were meant to be with.  As the the old man concludes:  "once again love is triumphant and a fairytale becomes real" before the cast celebrates with a dance number on a bridge followed by the release of hundreds of balloons.  While it's a pretty predictable movie bordering on sickeningly sweet in places, I really enjoyed the music and all the cameos.