The Forgiven

In the wake of apartheid, Desmond Tutu leads the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and travels to Pollsmoor Maximum Security Prison to meet Piet Blomfeld, an ex-security police officer and Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging member, to assess his candidacy for amnesty. The film follows Blomfeld as a potential witness to murders from the era, including the tragedy surrounding the teenage daughter of Mrs. Morobe, who pleads for answers and closure. Blomfeld initially shows little remorse, using the early encounters to hurl insults at the Archbishop and to project defiance rather than confession. Yet a pivotal moment arrives when the Archbishop presents a photograph of a young black girl from Blomfeld’s file and reminds him that he is trapped in two prisons—the one outside and the one inside his own heart—sparking a slow, unsettling shift in his attitude.

Francois Schmidt, Blomfeld’s fellow officer and fellow participant in the brutal acts of the past, launches a desperate bid to silence Blomfeld by hiring a black gang to kill him. Blomfeld, moved by the Archbishop’s words, spares the life of the prisoner sent to execute him and earns a surprising degree of respect from the gang, who ultimately tell Schmidt to fight his own battles. During this tense period, Blomfeld also forms a fragile bond with the prisoner named Benjamin, adding a layer of complexity to his evolving stance. The tension intensifies as Howard Varney(/actor/rob-gough) discusses Blomfeld’s past with [Mrs. Van der Berghe] but learns more about the insinuations of his childhood—how Piet once had a friend, a young girl, whose fate is tangled with his own family history. Blomfeld’s backstory unfolds further when it’s revealed that his father, Rian, did not approve of that friendship and murdered the girl and her family before leaving Blomfeld with a brutal beating that damaged his arm. The Blomfeld family later relocated to Zimbabwe, and the murders of the rest of his relatives appear to be retaliatory acts linked to Rian’s crimes.

As the narrative advances, Blomfeld reaches a turning point and decides to confess, summoning the Archbishop to witness his admission. In a dramatic turn, Schmidt orders a lockdown and then attacks Blomfeld with riot troopers; Blomfeld is beaten to death, yet he has managed to transmit an audio confession detailing the murder of Mrs. Morobe’s daughter and her boyfriend, a confession that is later played at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Blomfeld also leaves Benjamin with what little money remains in his account, a quiet gesture toward care for someone he once mistreated. The revelation ripples through the room as Mrs. Morobe confronts Hansi Coetzee, another participant in her daughter’s murder, and ultimately finds a path to forgiveness.

The story then returns to the Archbishop’s circle of understanding as Linda Coetzee(/actor/debbie-sherman) meets him, offering thanks for his work and admitting that she had not wanted to face what her husband had done. This moment of acknowledgment underscores the film’s central tension between accountability and mercy, memory and healing. In the closing sequence, the Archbishop and his wife visit the beach he had cherished as a child, a poignant reminder of a life that has begun to integrate into a broader, more hopeful reality. Boldly, quietly, the film closes on a note that forgiveness and reconciliation can coexist with overwhelming truth, and that personal and collective histories can begin to move toward a more inclusive future.

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 01:16