The best South African movies I've seen this year

I was born and raised in South Africa and still occasionally get home-sick. But it's 12,000 miles away so, when I feel a pang of nostalgia, I rent a South African movie.

Eventhough District 9 was produced by Peter Jackson (who made the Lord of the Rings film trilogy) and was nominated for four Academy Awards in 2010, it was disappointing. I enjoyed the South African in-jokes but it was clumsily made and was probably only nominated out of political correctness.

However these four movies were most satisfying.

Disgrace 2008:

After an imprudent affair with a student, Cape Town professor David Lurie (John Malkovich) flees to his daughter's remote farm to escape the scandal, only to find tragedy when a trio of black youths brutally assaults them. But Lurie is forced to face apartheid's lasting repercussions when he discovers that one of the attackers is related to a trusted employee (Eriq Ebouaney) in this pensive drama based on J.M. Coetzee's novel.

Malunde 2001:

Post-apartheid South Africa is the setting for this drama about a mismatched twosome who end up together on a life-altering journey to Cape Town. Polar opposites Kobus (Ian Roberts), a white ex-soldier who struggles with demons from his past, and Wonderboy (Kagiso Mtetwa), a young black street kid who clings to memories of his family, come together to take on the society that has cast them aside and eventually build a friendship for the ages.

Boy Called Twist 2004:

This contemporary spin on the immortal novel Oliver Twist follows an orphan named Twist (Jarrid Geduld) who survives on the streets of Cape Town, South Africa, by taking up with a band of young thieves. But Twist is soon caught picking the pocket of affluent Ebrahim Bassedien (Bill Curry), who -- instead of filing charges -- finds kinship with the boy and takes him in. Meanwhile, his criminal cohorts conspire to bring him back into the fold.

Beat the Drum 2003:

When a mysterious illness wipes out his entire village, claiming the lives of both his parents, 9-year-old Musa (Junior Singo) is forced to set off on his own, eventually joining the ranks of the scores of orphans who live on the streets of Johannesburg. Directed by David Hickson, this poignant award-winning film examines the heartbreaking effect that AIDS has had on the poor and underprivileged children of Africa.