Review Number INumber: Jozi Gold [Netflix]

Director: Donovan’s Swamp | Script: Donovan’s Swamp | Cast: S’Dumo Mtshali (Chili), Presley Chweneyagae (Shoes), Noxolo Dlamini (Dimo), Bongile Mantsai (Hyenaman), ea | Time to play: 113 minutes | Year: 2023

In the Netherlands, the police are trustworthy and make a difference every day. However, if that is not the case and the police and government are as corrupt as nits, can you as a mere police officer make an impact? According iNumber: Jozi Gold The answer to that question is: no, not really, but if you cooperate with the criminals, you will achieve something. Whether this message is actually sensible is debatable, but at least it provides a little more depth than your average police action movie.

iNumber: Jozi Gold It lasts almost two hours and that is especially noticeable in the first hour. The story meanders here without having a clear goal in mind. Chili is a cop who wonders how much of an impact he’s really making in the fight against the underworld when the criminals he and his childhood friend and co-cop Shoes catch go unpunished time and time again. He does all sorts of things that turn out to be important later on, but at the time of the scene they don’t drive the story forward and therefore aren’t very engaging.

Chili itself is as uninteresting at first as what it does. It’s clear to read on his face that he doesn’t really feel like it in every scene, which means that at some point it becomes very vague why this person is the main character. When he suddenly throws away his microphone and transmitter during an undercover mission to cooperate with criminals, he even makes it a little too colorful.

The thieves that Chile will work with turn out to be a family that wants justice for the homeland by stealing gold from its dictator. The strong motivations of the thieves make it understandable why Chile chooses these criminals over the police. In the police force, all officers only want to stop robbers for their own interest and not necessarily because stealing is illegal. As a result, Chili ends up as a great main character towards the end.

About halfway through the movie, everything suddenly falls into place. Chili receives sympathetic encouragement when he explains that he wants to steal the money too, to save the orphanage he grew up in and make a difference. Suddenly, there’s a story going somewhere while he’s working on a big heist, and the pace picks up a bit while he’s doing it.

Throughout the film, there is a lot of play with camerawork, editing, and framing, but these parts shine especially early on. The drone shots, the original editing of sunrises and sunsets, and the many angles from which scenes are shot are just a few examples of the techniques that keep the first hour visually engaging.

The visuals are still slick and technically excellent in the second part, but they’re no longer the only thing that keeps the movie going. The various parties out for the gold clash with each other regularly in the third act, which eventually builds to a thrilling finale on a scrap heap. With, of course, also plenty of nice gunfights and shootouts as a result. Despite the slightly deeper layer iNumber: Jozi Gold especially a good action movie. At least from the second half.

iNumber: Jozi Gold can be seen in Netflix.