The feature directorial debut of Embeth Davidtz (who also stars) is based on a memoir that recalls the sudden upheaval in 1980s Rhodesia with the rebellion against white control and the election of Charles Mugabe in the first free elections in the country. All seen from the perspective of an 8-year-old girl, the daughter of white farmers, it's unsettling and often disturbing. The performance of young actress Lexi Venter is amazing as she is so many things at once: innocent,…

After catching 'The Gangster' (1947), I dug out my unwatched Warner Archive DVD of this film, an earlier teaming of Barry Sullivan and Belita (who gets top billing). She is the star of an ice show nightclub and Sullivan is the go-getter operator who works his way up to manager and starts wooing Belita, who is also his boss's wife. Great looking film belying its Monogram budget, thanks in part to DP Karl Struss (of 'Sunrise' fame) and a ice…