Cheese, chocolate chunk, Dutch treat, skunk, Alien OG—all of these are names of marijuana strains Mo sells in Bradley Katzen’s Soweto Blaze. A film that starts with a warning that this motion picture can only be enjoyed at its best if you’re lighting one—let me tell you, it’s a fun ride without the high, too. The whole experience of the film is similar to that one fun joint you smoked back in high school and couldn’t stop laughing after.
Spoilers Ahead
What happens in the movie?
Mo is a local marijuana dealer who’s somehow keeping his life together. He often dreams about losing his virginity, but fate isn’t very kind to him. He often gets bullied by Thabo, a cop who takes money from him in exchange for letting him keep his business running. Mo’s only friends, Dill and Pickle, are hardcore stoners who use their brains less and their lungs more. Often sharing Wattpad wisdom on TikTok, Dill, and Pickle have no worries in life except their stash of weed. Mo wishes to open his own food truck, and he almost saves enough money to do so, but one ridiculous kidnapping plan turns his life into a rollercoaster ride.
Why do Dill and Pickle plan to kidnap Thandi?
After getting fired from their jobs for the millionth time, Dill and Pickle find themselves with nothing in their pockets. One fine day, they see Lebo “The Lion,” a notorious gang lord, extorting money out on the streets. The amount of cash blows their minds, and Dill and Pickle want some for themselves. Mo tells them it’s a bad idea and they shouldn’t be anywhere near Lebo. Dill and Pickle have made up their minds nonetheless, and they target Lebo’s daughter, Thandi. Thandi is against her dad’s ways, and she refuses to shoot a man when Lebo asks her to. He is planning on passing the torch to his daughter, but Thandi is not willing to walk down the same path as him. Zaza, Lebo’s muscle, hates Thandi for being a chicken. Dill and Pickle find Thandi through Instagram and wait outside her house until Thandi has had enough and plans to leave the house. Thandi takes all of Lebo’s cash and escapes out the balcony. She gets in Dill and Pickle’s car, thinking it’s an Uber, and ends up in Mo’s bedroom with her hands and legs tied up.
How does Mo deal with the mess?
Mo is finally looking forward to a fresh start, knowing his savings are in place. The poor guy finds an unknown girl in his bedroom, and he has no idea how she ended up there. When Mo lets Thandi talk, they agree that he’ll let her go. But the bell rings, and Dill and Pickle explain everything to him. Mo refuses to join in on this crazy idea, and he plans to return Thandi to her father the next day. Pickle isn’t having any of it, and she secretly plans with Dill to get her out of Mo’s house and still get the ransom. But Mo’s fate isn’t just limited to two friends ruining his life. Thabo knocks at his door to get his share, and he is in no mood to leave. He keeps negotiating about more money, and Thandi manages to free her legs. The sound from the closed room alerts Thabo, and Mo sees no way out. He takes out his entire savings to give more money, but Thabo snatches most of it away from him. Just when Thabo is about to leave with a man’s dreams, Thandi comes out of the room, still blindfolded, and knocks herself out after running into a wall. Thabo is impressed when he sees Mo has kidnapped the daughter of the biggest mafia in the town, and he includes himself in the plan.
Does Zaza kill Thandi?
Thabo calls Zaza to discuss a ransom, but Zaza cuts off the call. She obviously doesn’t care about Thandi’s wellbeing, and she’d be relieved if something were to happen to her. But Lebo finds out Thandi has taken all the cash with her—almost two million rands. Now desperate for the lost money, Zaza shows up at Mo’s doorstep. Meanwhile, Mo has set Thandi free, and the two of them have started connecting. He’s making her a milkshake when they are met with bullets. They manage to run away just in time, and Thandi fires back at them. Not one bullet touched them, but all of them hit Zaza’s car. Dill and Pickle arrive just in time, and the four of them drive off while Zaza looks at a flat tire and Thabo is cursing his aim.
What happens when Zaza captures the squad?
Thandi can’t find the bag she left home with. Dill and Pickle have no idea what she’s talking about, and you wouldn’t expect anything different from stoners. Both Mo and Thandi were so close to freedom and a fresh start, and now they’re being chased by both the mafia and law enforcement. Thandi discovers her bag in the trunk of Dill’s car while looking for munchies, but she keeps quiet and waits for the right moment. When all of them fall asleep, Thandi sneaks out of the car and takes her bag, but Mo finds her running off. Mo’s heartbroken to see the girl he trusted turn her back on him. Just in that moment, Zaza and Thabo get to them, and they take the gang to Lebo.
Can Mo and Thandi survive the Last Stand at Soweto Rock?
One thing you need to know before I start discussing the final moments of this film is that it’s a ridiculous film, and you’ve got to bear with it. I can imagine the writer’s table being full of half-smoked joints, and that’s the fun part. Mo and Thandi use Wikihow to learn how to loosen a bolt with a cable tie, and they do manage to pull it off. Meanwhile, Dill and Pickle are at the mercy of Lebo, and Dill has gone into a state where he’s accepted death and can’t wait to embrace it. Thandi and Mo escaping allows Dill and Pickle to evade the gunpoint and run with the money. Mo gets his hands on a gun and shoots a goon, to his surprise. Thandi, too, kills a man and takes his gun to open fire on her father and his men. Mo is head over heels seeing Thandi letting her rage out through the bullets, but the romance is cut short when she runs out of ammo. Lebo comes out of his cover to kill his daughter, but Mo desperately chokes him long enough for Thandi to get back up and hit Lebo with a log of wood. Mo throws Lebo into a deep hole, and the fall breaks the lion’s arm and legs. When it finally seems to be the end of evil, Zaza shoots Mo and Thandi from a distance, but Pickle knocks her out soon after, stopping Zaza from causing further damage. Mo and Thandi lie in each other’s arms, and they finally kiss, knowing they’ve changed each other’s lives. Dill and Pickle cuff Thabo too; the stoner duo manages to wave the danger off when it seems the most unlikely.
Thandi has turned her father and his associates in, and Mo finally got to open the food truck he dreamed of. Thandi and him are now together, as Thandi is his partner in the business as well. Dill has become a full-time guru on TikTok, as the money ensured he wouldn’t have to spend any time without a joint in his hands. Pickle works as the mascot of Mo and Thandi’s takeout, and Mo reveals that he has come up with a new strain of hybrid marijuana. All the plans friends make when they smoke up together, this group of friends actually make it come true in the end.
