There’s something a bit wrongfooted about Daryn’s Gym from South African director Brett Michael Innes. It concerns a corporate battle between gyms across the street from each other. One is run by a man and the other by a woman. And if that isn’t quite politically charged enough, the former is of mixed race and the other is a black woman. That they are in a contest, no matter its fictional nature, would be a tricky thing to manoeuvre in many countries; in South Africa, it has explosive potential.
So it is a bit of a surprise that, somehow, the country’s larger racial issues do not show up overtly. It’s a relief in some ways, but it is also easy to see how it can be fashioned as criticism.
Innes, who is also the screenwriter, navigates the potential explosiveness of his material by relegating the political aspects so far, they’re offscreen. In place of the politics, he plays the comedy to absurdist levels. There is a scripture-quoting beefcake (Sivuyile Ngesi) who loves Jesus for purely religious reasons and beyond. “His muscle to fat ratio in those old Renaissance photos is inspirational. Hashtag goals,” he says. There is a gym staffer (William Harding) who “milks prostates”. And, of course, when someone gets tasered, he pees on himself.
The titular character (Clifford Joshua Young) is third-generation in a line of gym owners. He isn’t quite a cutthroat businessman. He isn’t a gym rat either. So when the multinational Starz Fitness Centre shows up on the other side of the road, its killer CEO, Funeka Ndlovu (Hlubi Mboya), figures it’ll be easy to get the competition to roll over and die.
For his part, Daryn is struggling under the weight of his family’s legacy. He is aware the business is failing. But his attempts at raising revenue are rather laughable—he drives a taxi and has started a massage parlour and a car wash. We see him manually reset a customer’s rising erection. In other words, Funeka isn’t exactly wrong about the rival business. Nonetheless, an initial offer to buy Miller and Sons fails. What’s left to do but try some good ol’ fashion underhand moves?
The style used is faux-documentary and reality TV. Viewers are shown everything, including analyses of various situations by the characters, but the characters themselves do not quite know everything about each other. Their cluelessness is a source of humour, but the comedy mainly comes from the characters and their lines. Innes is a novelist who has chosen a style that works quite well for a text-first director. And with assistance from a cast that nails their lines and his cinematographer Dino Benedetti, his third feature as director is quite different from his award-winning sophomore, Fiela’s Child. He is not really carrying the heavy weights here—but there is sufficient fun to go around. Daryn’s Gym is primed for some success at festivals and should enjoy replays on TV. But, be warned: You might want to watch it without the kids around.
Cast: Clifford Joshua Young, Sivuyile Ngesi, Hlubi Mboya, Carla Classen, Natasha Sutherland, Deon Coetzee, Carla Classen, William Harding, Mphumzi Nontshinga
Director, screenwriter: Brett Michael Innes
Producers: Paulo Areal, Brett Michael Innes
Cinematographer: Dino Benedetti
Editor: C.A. Van Aswegen
Production Designer: Chantel Carter
Executive Producers: Thabang Phetla, Helga Palmer, Marlon Davids
Production Company: Nostalgia Productions (South Africa)
Duration: 91 minutes
In English
