The opening scenes of the South African film Tsotsi, directed by Gavin Hood was very important in foreshadowing later elements in the work. The first scene is of Tsotsi and his gang (Boston, Butcher and Die Aap) in Tsotsi's shack. We see Butcher and Die Aap gambling with a dice whilst Tsotsi is standing by a window looking out into the night with his back on the camera so we do not see him at first glance. Then they leave the shack and make their way to the train station of Johannesburg, a place where they pick out vulnerable people for money.
The first shot is an extreme close up of two dice that has just been rolled by a hand. After this shot we see two men Die Aap and Butcher gambling in Tsotsi's shack. The symbolic meaning of the dice is of fate. This is important as in the game of life we do not know what will happen and that is evident, throughout the film when Tsotsi and his gang makes decisions solely based on luck. These young, uneducated gangsters do not take into consideration the consequences of living on the edge and not knowing what is to happen to them as they gamble away their lives. When you roll a dice, it is the dice that is in control of what number it is to come up not you. In the same way in this film the fate of these gangsters are controlled by the decisions they make to do something. This scene foreshadows later elements of the film and some of Tsotsi's decisions. In the later parts of the film, Tsotsi is out on the rich suburbs as a rich woman gets out of her car to the gate to buzz her husband to open the gate. The woman seems to be having trouble buzzing her husband and Tsotsi takes this opportunity to steal the car. Luck is shown on Tsotsi's face as he silently approaches the car and gets ready to drive off. The woman stops buzzing the gate and she runs to her car screaming to stop Tsotsi. She opens the car door and Tsotsi shoots her. In less than a mile, after careless driving, a cry of a baby is heard and Tsotsi turns around to discover a little baby boy strapped on the backseat. The fate of the dice in this scenario is that Tsotsi saw luck in stealing a car but he never knew he would be in a position to shoot a mother, who happens to have a baby in the car.
During the opening scenes there is a close up of Butchers makeshift weapon tapping impatiently on the table while gambling with Die Aap. This knife foreshadows later elements in the film as it is a common weapon found in the streets and often used as a preferred tool in killing as it causes little bleeding and is easy to stab into the skin. This knife was used by the provocative Butcher to kill an innocent vulnerable old man on the train. When the train reached its destination and stopped,all the commuters poured out undisturbed and into the platform to their separate ways. This shows the uncontrolled violence and crime that takes place in South Africa everyday and in a way for most people is seen as a normal way of life in every typical day as no-one stepped up to investigate what was going on. As one of the themes in this film is redemption, these acts of unjust violence is what Tsotsi later on aims to redeem himself from. The idea of change of heart is brought about when he stalks Morris, a man in a wheelchair who had assaulted Tsotsi by calling him "dog" after Tsotsi accidentally trips on him. Tsotsi decides to take revenge as he stalks Morris to an underground place. Feeling of unease is created by low rumbling sounds and the clatter of coins in a tin can. Tsotsi approaches him and asks "Why do you go on living like a dog?". Morris stuns Tsotsi with "Me, I like to feel the sun on the streets". With this Tsotsi comes in terms that you do not need power, status and wealth by means of violence to be happy or have a meaningful life.
In the opening sequence, there is a long wide shot of Tsotsi's shack. in the mis en scene we see the silhouette of Tsotsi's back. As his back is on the viewer unlike the other gang members and he is set up as an outsider, someone who is different from the beginning. His status as a leader is shown when Die Aap asks "What are going to do today?", followed by the other gang members "yea Tsotsi what are we going to do?". This foreshadows later elements in the film as he makes the decisions and the gang does not function without him. As the leader and main character, he reveals to the audience his lost childhood, and by discovering the baby, he changes from a thug to a more humane person.
When Tsotsi and his gang left the shack, on their way to the train station in Johannesburg we get a more in depth analysis of the shantytown. There is a mid shot angle of Tsotsi walking in front of his gang, Die Aap on his right, Butcher on his left and Boston at the back. Tsotsi walk with an air of dominance as he looks straight ahead whilst his gang watch out for him on the sides and back. He wears a black leather jacket, a signature dress code which indicates how tough and rebellious he is as a gangster. This dress code foreshadows later elements in the film when he discovers self awareness. We know this as later in the film, after he had given the baby to its parents he was circled by police cars. He stood in the middle of the road with his arms raised signaling surrender. One of the things that stood out was his white shirt. the white shirt was now the indication of justice. All those times as a gangster with a black leather jacket committing unjust acts are over. With arms raised wearing a white shirt and standing alone in the middle of the road shows that he is willing to stand up for his actions and face up to consequences.
At the end of the opening sequence, there is an extreme long establishing shot of the inside of the train station. The station is vast, modern and clean. In this shot one of the major concern is to highlight the issue of AIDS. We know this because of the huge billboard display quoting "We are all affected by HIV/AIDS". The vast interior is also a place to scope out victims. This station is important in foreshadowing later elements in the film as it tells us how serious AIDS is in South Africa. Tsotsi lost his mother because of this disease and we know this through the flashback. There was a flashback of Tsotsi's mum laying sick in bed telling her son to come over to her. Tsotsi's dad comes into the room angry yelling at the mother that she is too sick and demanding Tsotsi to leave the room. Tsotsi hesitates between his mum wanting to show love to her son and his father wanting him to get out. When Tsotsi runs out of the room, he looks back to see his dad kick their dog, breaking its leg. this shows what an abusive and violent dad he had. this gives the viewer an understanding as to why Tsotsi chose the hard, aggressive, gangster way of life because he had grown up alone with no one for support.
To conclude, the opening sequence in the film Tsotsi is important and therefore foreshadows later elements in the whole work. Techniques such as camera shot, dialogue and mis en scene are used to help viewers understand the significant ideas portrayed. The elements at these opening scenes foreshadow the themes of redemption, self awareness and lost childhood in Tsotsi's journey of life. The issue of HIV/AIDS is also addressed in South Africa.
