Cheeseboy son look at the shoes, look at the watch, look at the car, this shirt costs more than you make in a month. I got the latest gadgets, ladies get wet when they see me, the style screams see me and I know you do. I could buy the whole shop and you know I do. Cheeseboy son, Royale with cheese, charisma scotching hot and the swag is a breeze. Kenny’s family is poor always begging please. I’ll give you a lease on the style so you won’t have to be parasitic like fleas, I take over any charges with interest and added fees cause the presence is huge and intimidating like a beast! Cheeseboy son, can’t tell me nothing, Royale with cheese. Don’t be mad cause I am doing me better than you doing you. Just give me an invoice and I’ll settle what’s due. Buy your love with alcohol and bounce that’s my queue. You can never compare to me that’s cute. Let’s laugh at Kenny, his family is poor. Cheeseboy son, lunch is on me. The bar is open and we can drink until three. No need to worry about the costs cause I got the keys, to unlock any woman with resistance, just say my name and they will cease to show all of this resistance. Cause the name is consistent, make it rain to make her dance like strippers who are persistent. Cheeseboy son, Royale with cheese, look at the pool, it’s heated. My stature is bigger than yours when I am seated. I got maids, I got cooks. I can get you laid, improve your looks. Cheeseboy son, Royale with cheese, I could change your life, only if you’re honest and loyal like a wife, the money could be rife. Cheeseboy son, just tell me what you want and I’ll deliver, you’ll be on your knees, I’ll make you a believer. I can move you up that list and get you that liver, only if you acknowledge your best position is silver.
Cheeseboy son look at the shoes, look at the watch, look at the car, this shirt costs more than you make in a month. I got the latest gadgets, ladies get wet when they see me, the style screams see me and I know you do. I could buy the whole shop and you know I do. Cheeseboy son, Royale with cheese, charisma scotching hot and the swag is a breeze. Kenny’s family is poor always begging please. I’ll give you a lease on the style so you won’t have to be parasitic like fleas, I take over any charges with interest and added fees cause the presence is huge and intimidating like a beast! Cheeseboy son, can’t tell me nothing, Royale with cheese. Don’t be mad cause I am doing me better than you doing you. Just give me an invoice and I’ll settle what’s due. Buy your love with alcohol and bounce that’s my queue. You can never compare to me that’s cute. Let’s laugh at Kenny, his family is poor. Cheeseboy son, lunch is on me. The bar is open and we can drink until three. No need to worry about the costs cause I got the keys, to unlock any woman with resistance, just say my name and they will cease to show all of this resistance. Cause the name is consistent, make it rain to make her dance like strippers who are persistent. Cheeseboy son, Royale with cheese, look at the pool, it’s heated. My stature is bigger than yours when I am seated. I got maids, I got cooks. I can get you laid, improve your looks. Cheeseboy son, Royale with cheese, I could change your life, only if you’re honest and loyal like a wife, the money could be rife. Cheeseboy son, just tell me what you want and I’ll deliver, you’ll be on your knees, I’ll make you a believer. I can move you up that list and get you that liver, only if you acknowledge your best position is silver.
The Universe has been telling me to change my ways but I’ve been too steady and complacent. It’s my fault, I deserve the robbery. It was a typical Friday and I had on my SpongeBob shirt, my awesome silver Cassio watch, my neck beeds and my classic “Champion” jacket. In my pocket I had my keys and my Mint cellphone. It was a signature great day. I went to my friend’s which is a 18-24 minutes walk and we had a great time. At around 1 o’clock in the morning, I decided that I want to go home, I was tired. So I walked back home. I know it’s irresponsible to walk home so late especially in Alex, Gomora but I’ve been doing this for years. Plus I don’t think I would be robbed, hurt or killed. You see the most important thing is the walk, it is your posture, your steps, you have to project a confident aura and no one will fuck with you. Your shoulders must be broad and open, make that alpha walk an inherent part of you. Look like you might do shit! That’s what I learned and it has served me well thus far. Plus, I have Inside knowledge, I chill with niggas who rob and steal at the corners. The insight I’ve gained is that niggas are hungry, I can relate, they don’t want trouble, in fact they are good guys, they don’t want to hurt anybody, they just want your possessions so they can flip them. It’s that simple, they are professionals conducting a transaction, I can appreciate that, I understand. It is Darwins survival of the fittest, they don’t have much options, go for the weakest prey. I made myself a target. No one is born with hate in their hearts, the truth is that we all need to do what we can to make it through. This is true for everyone in the world and so everybody can relate. Besides if you are dumb enough to walk alone in the AMs of the morning, you probably deserve it. You are passive and comfortable. You think life is a given, the Universe needs to shake you up. That’s what happened to me.
For the record, I don’t think I’m passive and comfortable, I just feel that there’s nothing that I can’t do. I live life with no fear. I feel that there’s nothing I can’t handle and I do what I want. Besides niggas bleed just like you so I am not scared of anybody. If you are going to win, win because you have a better hand. They had a better hand. I was walking alone in the dark, the place was quiet as a graveyard. If you had dropped a pin the sound would be audible. My strides were long and fast paced. Then out of nowhere 3 guys appeared in front on me. One guy approached me and cocked his gun. The sound was cold and metallic. “cling-cling”. It was death appearing like a bad dream and I was lucid. I stopped but I was unfazed. I was trapped. I was under their control. I was calm, everything was just surreal. I knew what they wanted. I understood their mentality. I decided to cooperate and give them what they wanted, it wasn’t like I had a choice. The guy with the gun was like: “we got you now, you didn’t think this day was coming didn’t you, welcome to hell” but in vernacular. Another guy came up to me and started searching me to the third guys demands. I was still cool, undeterred, not bothered, I accepted the situation for what it was. To be honest, I knew that this day had to come sometime. I was relaxed, they got nothing of me in terms of emotions, I was blank as a canvas. They instructed me to keep walking forward while they searched me and so I did for a while. They took my phone, my keys and my watch and so I stopped walking. As if to signal, enough guys you have everything, now can I go back to my life? I was still in control, they can’t deny me of my will. As I stopped, they stopped, that’s when I realized my power and saw weakness on theirs. They were accident murderers, you know, shook one’s. I didn’t challenge them because they might hurt me to prove their dominance but I was superior. Niggas is reckless when they have power in their hands. One bad move or misplaced comment and ‘Bang Bang’. So relax. My control of the situation was subtle. Being passive and listening to their demands gave them the illusion of power. When I asserted myself, they didn’t know what to do because I had cooperated at first, plus they already had my phone, watch and keys so it wasn’t worth it. As I stopped walking and listening to their demands, they guy dictating the robbery said, “take that Champion jacket too.” I was shattered. They took it off me and all that mental superiority evaporated like steam. I felt helpless as a new born baby. After they took my jacket, I just left because I still had my pride. I didn’t let them dismiss me, I didn’t give them that power, they never had that power. All they had was a tool that helped facilitate the reposition process more effectively, that’s it. It was a professional encounter, they took my valuables, no one was hurt, the process was smooth and everybody was happy. I was happy too because I got to test myself in a high pressure situation and it didn’t get to me. It was like I was above the whole situation like Jesus when he walked on water. It was a stress test and I passed with flying colors. I was patient with them. I read the situation, their body language, their mannerisms and followed the cues. I learned that emotional intelligence is everything because we are all emotional creatures. Moreover for them because their lives are dictated by the amygdala, fear and survival makes up their reality. I learned that love triumphs fear. Have humility. Be soft, yield, be like water and move with the waves, anything other than that is counterproductive. Be present to people’s emotions and mannerisms so you can at least have a chance to guide the ship. I don’t blame them because they are my brothers and I love them, I understand. Life is difficult and on that day I was the sucker who made their excursion worth it. Overall it was a successful robbery like the last scene of “Pulp Fiction” and I am Samuel L. Jackson.
It helps being minimalist because the things they took are not worth much in terms of monetary value but sentimentally they meant everything to me. I transferred a lot of emotions to my watch, jacket and cellphone. Kalushi gave me that Cassio watch with a lot of love. It represents friendship and our pure entrepreneurial drive when we started our farm with big plans and dreams in mind. He is a good friend and I feel they took his spirit away from me. My cellphone was 6 years old, KG, a legend, one of the best people I know recommended that I buy that cellphone back in 2015. It was such a deal! A steal really. It cost R100 and it had Bluetooth, radio, internet, mp3 and had a 4gb memory card. Back then a 4gb memory card alone cost R80! But for R100 I got a phone with all those features and a memory card. It makes sense that Kg was the one who spotted that deal because his a legend and that deal was so legendary. It feels like they took the wisdom of Kg away from me. And my “Champion” jacket was bought in the 1990’s in London. It belonged to my father. It was vintage and so cool, I loved it, it was my favorite jacket, it somehow toppled my leather jacket. They took a gift that was hereditary, something with value and substance. I am gutted but that’s life for you and as you grow up things get taken away from you. This forsters growth and the opportunity to evolve because change is the only permanent thing. I am grateful for the experience, I know it’s all God’s plan. This is to make me better. I am happy it happened because now I get to reflect and concoct a way forward. There’s a beauty in seeing life as a blessing, a gift.
I have been a Quentin Tarantino fan all my life. From “Reservoir Dogs” all the way to “Once upon a time in Hollywood”. Admittedly, my first Quentin Tarantino film was “Kill Bill” in 2005. I remember the day like it were yesterday. It was on a Friday and it was playing on M-Net. The next Friday, M-Net would play “Kill Bill: Volume 2”. I watched both of them and my life was changed forever. It was film-making I had not seen before. The visuals blew me away, they were exceptionally great. They had a tendency to linger in your mind long after you had watched the movie. So clearly, I always remembered the “Pussy Wagon” and that epic yellow Bruce Lee jumpsuit that the bride was fighting in. That yellow jumpsuit is so iconic, it is memorable, it is imprinted and permanently engraved in the fabric of film – it is amazing creativity and vision from Quentin Tarantino. The fight on the snow between “Cotton-mouth” and “The Bride”; the atmosphere was so smooth and quiet – it was full of serenity and “Cotton-mouth” was in all-white complimenting the snow. The contrast in that fighting scene is amazing because it ends in blood and death. The anime scene on is something that hasn’t been done in film before. It is so epic! He incorporated Japanese taste and culture into the film. The film is surreal. It is a blend of different traditions and cultures infused into this one craft about revenge. The music, the Samari sword fights, the characters, the gore violence, the awesome dialogues, the authentic creativity and the underlying chaos that manifests itself when you least expect it – Quentin Tarantino knocked “Kill Bill” out the park. “Kill Bill” is cinematic excellence. It is an experience you will never forget. It is supremely entertaining!
What I love most about Quentin Tarantino movies is the professionalism. The characters are usually professionals that need to do a job and as such “morality” is exempted in the equation. Every action is justified. Quentin Tarantino doesn’t want you to morally judge his characters. There is no hero in a Quentin Tarantino movie instead he shows you different perspectives of different characters. To communicate this he uses nonlinear storylines and gives the characters in his movies more or less the same screen time. In this way there is neutrality for the professionals who serve as characters in his films. The story on “Reservoir Dogs” follows professional criminals who plan a heist, among them is a police officer who is undercover. The duality of the character of the professional criminal/police officer is the underlying chaos that gives the story its texture and the unpredictability and uncertainty of the plot – it is a texture that gives the story a feeling of “anything can happen”. We also see this type of double-agent play on “Jackie Brown” when a middle-aged flight attendant woman serves as a mole for his criminal boss and also as an informant for the police so that they can apprehend this criminal boss. Jackie Brown strategically plays both parties and in the end, walks away with a lot of money. The duality in the characters of Quentin Tarantino is a common feature in all his films. Again, we see Butch, a promising boxer on the highly acclaimed sophomore movie “Pulp Fiction” win a boxing match despite the fact that he was paid big money to lose. The match was rigged and Butch makes more money from bets. Something that makes his boss big Marcellus Wallace go on a manhunt to catch Butch and kill him. We also see this duality on “Inglorious Basterds”, Django Unchained” and “The Hateful Eight”. These characters are not what they say they are.
Further what makes a Quentin Tarantino movie unpredictable is it’s historical inaccuracies. Quentin Tarantino has a knack for changing historical events and telling his side instead. On “Inglorious Basterds”, the basterds kill Adolf Hitler in the premier of “Nation’s Pride” to end WWII. He over-stimulates the plot and adds his homemade spices. This he does for the sake of the viewer, to entertain and create an experience. He doesn’t mind letting the viewer know that we are watching a movie with characters in it. He is over the top and believes violence creates a better cinematic experience. So, in his movies more often you will see violence just for the sake of violence. Violence with no relevance or use to the plot of the story. A perfect example of this mindless yet entertaining violence can be seen on “Kill Bill” and “Django Unchained”. However, the thing that makes a Quentin Tarantino movie is the dialogue. The dialogues of his characters are unconventional in the sphere of film-making. They are often long, free-flowing and have nothing to do with the plot of the movie. They are entertaining, funny and reference a lot of popular culture as seen on “Pulp Fiction” when we are introduced to Jules and Vincent for the first time in that iconic “Royale with Cheese” dialogue. The opening scene of “Reservoir Dogs” when the professional criminals talk about “Like a virgin” and “Tipping” is the best thing you will ever experience on a movie. In his dialogues, Quentin Tarantino explores social conventions and ideologies – he is provocative, philosophical, engaging, thought-provoking and humorous. At heart, Quentin Tarantino is really a fan of films and movies. He approaches a film with the intent to dazzle and blow you away. He is a genius who can spin anything. This is seen on “Django Unchained” when the slave, flips the script around and becomes the hero who kills evil white men for money. Django also rescues his enslaved wife and literally blows-up the plantation. “Django Unchained” is a perspective we hadn’t seen when it comes to the subject of slavery. It was fresh, daring and exquisite. It was a different narrative, a perspective that was out of the box – it was a typical Quentin Tarantino movie. The characters were all professionals of their trades; a bounty hunter, a seasoned slaver and the house nigga. “Django Unchained” was grand and bold. It incorporated everything Tarantino, it had a Western theme, professionals, double agents, unpredictable and underlying chaos, gore violence, great dialogues and awesome soundtracks.
Quentin Tarantino draws his inspiration from other movies. He states that he copy’s from other movies. From camera angles and techniques to Western stand-offs. To movie sets in other movies to the costumes. His genius comes from the fact that he is obsessed with movies and the subject of film-making. Being obsessed, he incorporates what he loves from other movies to his to elevate them to greatness. All his films generate a cult-like following because of the fresh air they bring to the world. He always seems to resuscitate the film world with every release. The release of “Once upon a time in Hollywood” makes me sad because it’s almost time for him to close the curtains. His next movie will be his last. It’s hard saying goodbye to a legend, to a genius. The world is not ready, I am not ready. I wish we had more time. But it’s fine, at least I have all your movies. They have brought me so much happiness in the past and because they are classics, I have no doubt that they will carry on doing the same in the future. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for everything Quentin. Thank you for sharing yourself and your genius with the world. Thank you for giving us classics. Thank you for making me love movies. You started everything for me. I know creativity because I saw a Quentin Tarantino movie when I was 9.
antakalipa 