Piet se Tante

'Piet se Tante' is a delightful, laugh out loud comedy about mistaken identity - in the best possible way!

Whilst watching this, I thought it would make an excellent stage play. As it turns out, 'Piet se Tante' is based on the stage play 'Charley's Aunt' by English writer Brandon Thomas. Frederik Burgers - a South African movie icon of yesteryear - is fantastic as Piet Louw, who becomes his own aunt, Mrs Opperman. Needless to say, the stage is set (so to speak!) for many hilarious moments.

Fearing they might be expelled from school after a prank, Piet's roommates, Karel and Frans, decide to dress Piet as his wealthy Aunt, under the pretext that 'she' is to make a substantial donation to the school. However, things doesn't quite go according to plan, when Piet pulls of his aunt so well that the professor and his roommate's Dad falls for 'her'!! To make matters worse, the real Mrs Opperman shows up...

The characters often find themselves in the most awkward situations, ensuring a hilarious, fun movie experience. Made back in 1959, they speak Afrikaans in a way that is not spoken anymore, and I found this nostalgic. A man in woman's clothing must surely have been controversial back in the day, but this film is so overwhelmingly entertaining, I'm sure they must have loved it just as much back then.