A Soweto Love Story is a South African romantic comedy that sees Matriarch Bongekile, a desperate mother, trying to get her three sons settled down and married ASAP. This effort takes the form of a contest with the family home up for grabs, but, of course, the ending of the movie isn’t as simple as finding out who wins — it’s about discovering the meaning of family, home, and relationships too.
As the film progresses we watch as one brother Menzi goes on a dating spree to find the perfect girl, whilst slowly falling for his Chef. The second brother, Sandile, tries to patch things up with his ex, whom he loves, whilst trying to advance his music career. And the third brother, Sky, tries to make a fake engagement with his lesbian best friend but is outed by her girlfriend. This only makes the family feel stronger about Sky being gay.
We watch how all three brothers’ lives are made better, especially their careers, by these women, suggesting that these loves are real and not just to get a house. Their relationships build and develop from trust, honesty, and friendship.
Who do the brothers end up with?
In the last twenty minutes, we see Sandile head to Dubai with his hit song, and his ex comes running through the airport to find him to reunite. They both embrace and confirm their engagement. We knew from the start these two were going to end up together, and it might be a cheesy rom-com trope but we love someone running through an airport to catch their love before the plane leaves.
After numerous dates, the tight control freak nerdy brother Menzi meets a girl exactly like him and they enter a contract, but his chef admits she’s in love with him and has to leave. Menzi follows Dina and confesses he loves her too and makes the wild gesture of singing for her in front of everyone. Again, we knew they would end up together, and we got the rom-com trope of realisations and giant gestures.
The brother everyone thought was gay introduces his very real female girlfriend. I was a little disappointed, I wanted him to be gay, but it works and they look very happy together.
How does A Soweto Love Story end?
So by the final scenes, all three brothers end up in serious, real relationships.
The final scene is the final countdown to the New Year, fireworks shoot across the skies and our three brothers are all happy kissing their girlfriends. Like the start, it’s filled with bright colors and happy people. It’s a very sweet, wholesome ending that puts a big smile on my face.
Who wins the contest?
This is a hard one to decipher throughout the film. One brother claims to have a secret girlfriend from the start, and another is in a committed relationship and chases his ex down to marry him. The film does well in keeping you guessing and not being obvious.
However, the matriarch gives the house to Sandile, who then tells her to give it to Menzi, who then suggests the mother keeps the house. So in the end, the house remains everyone’s home.
What did you think of the ending of A Soweto Love Story? Comment below.
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