This horrendous portrait of the beginnings of repression in South Africa in 1961, when the 90-day custody law was introduced, is well-meant and extremely well-acted and occasionally even hartbreaking. Director Chris Menges' sympathy with his actors is obvious, but otherwise his treatment is unnecessarily laborious, unable to resist stretching the true story out and driving every anti-Apartheid point home. A script that paid more attention to literary persuasion and worn its heart less obviously on its sleeve would also have helped the film's impact. Still, there are great performances from Barbara Hershey and young Jodhi May (as his daughter) and from Nadine Chambers as Hershey's friend, not strong enough to leap the gap of ostracism. Worth seeing, though, for the acting and for its vitally important and tragic theme.

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