Renowned actress Enhle Mbali gives a compelling and honest portrayal of a grieving wife after losing a cheating husband in the movie, ‘Uhambo’ streaming first and only on Showmax.
Uhambo is a hard-hitting, often uneasy, and sad portrayal of a taxi driver with a beautiful wife and a roving eye – one that gets him into trouble. Siphiwe Mtshali plays a laid-back taxi driver, Vusi, who has a beautiful wife (portrayed by Enhle Mbali) in this authentic and suspenseful drama.
From the start to finish the film unquestionably feels real & the plot heightens numerous themes around marriage affairs, grief, the scourge of nyaope addiction in our communities and redemption of lost ones. Enhle Mbali gives a compelling and honest portrayal of a wife who is grieving. In Uhambo, Vusi cheats on Zoleka with Lufuno (portrayed by Shonisani Masutha). His roving eye turns his life upside down & he gets to learn his lesson the hard way when a lover’s husband shoots him. Determined to turn his life around, his spirit is seeking forgiveness from his wife who’s not only heartbroken by the cheating but is also left with nothing because Vusi is a self-employed taxi owner who didn’t believe in bank accounts.
Zoleka then struggles to grieve thinking about the shame that her husband has put her through. She goes through an emotional turmoil while making sense of supernatural reveals from a nyaope guy by the name Zweli who has a gift of communicating with spirits.
“Zoleka is a character who goes through a lot in the film…she wears her heart on her sleeve and everything she feels is immediate and having to play that, is insane. I was preparing as I was going but that makes it more fun, more me, it makes it more organic.” – says Mbali
The film is written by Neo Sibiya whose writing experience boasts four years of writing and storylining some of the biggest hit shows in Mzansi. The premise of Uhambo was originally an idea by Thabo Mashaila who is a director of the film. Neo, Thabo, and Xolani Nhlapho are co-executive producers for the film, which was initially titled The Mad Taxi Driver.
Neo Sibiya had this to say about the inspiration behind this story:
“It’s a world that is constantly in motion, physically and spiritually”, says Neo who is also the executive producer and co-founder at Eccentric Circus Productions. “It’s a restless world that will ultimately be calmed by our protagonist Vusi facing himself off in the most defining moments of his life. It is a story about reflecting on choices you have made and taking responsibility for the actions we take and how they hurt those we love now and after we leave them.”
This is the prolific message highlighted in this film and the suspense in how it all unfolds makes it a very interesting film to watch. The denial in each character pertaining to their respective journeys. Vusi trying to make sense of what is happening in his life while Zweli is in denial of his gift. His love for his wife pushes him towards helping her from a ruthless estate agent who just wanted to ruin her financially. Zweli also accepts his gift, accepting his mother and helping another ghost who wants her murderer to be caught so that she can find peace and rest.
Starring Siphiwe Mtshali, Enhle Mbali, Nat Ramabulana, Thato Moeng, Galaletsang Koffman, Ntshepiseng Montshiwa, Shonisani Masutha, Zizi Peteni, and Ntshepiseng Montshiwa
The film commands such great performances from actors, a well-written script that’s not predictable and the suspense keeps it in the right direction. The location sets the tone from the beginning with scenes around the taxi rank, and nyaope boys roaming in the streets, and the music just echoes Mzansi’s original sound.
Uhambo is currently streaming on Showmax.
