Ernest Cole: Lost and Found Review

Told through photos and archival footage, Ernest Cole: Lost and Found is a fascinating documentary about an important historical figure.

As the title suggests, Ernest Cole: Lost and Found focuses on Ernest Cole, the first Black freelance photographer in South Africa. Cole, as the film informs us, is a South African photographer known for his photographs of the Apartheid in his country. The documentary retells Cole’s life and his efforts in portraying the horrors and reality of such a system through the photographs that he took and the letters he wrote in voiceover format. 

“This is the story of what happened […] as told by Ernest Cole himself,” is one of the first things the audience gets from this film . From the opening  intertitles, Ernest Cole: Lost and Found puts a lot of emphasis on Cole’s photographs. They remain, to this day, a window into a world that could otherwise be easily forgotten, and a way to retrace the life and memories of the men who took them. His life work, accompanied by the voiceover, are our way into the story and the visual representation of everything we are hearing through his letters.

This is even more relevant when we remember that a lot of these pictures were hidden for years, which we are reminded of both at the beginning and at the end of Ernest Cole: Lost and Found. The photos and the narrated voiceover from his letters and writing allow Cole to be in charge of telling his own story. The narration is also an interesting element: the words are Cole’s but the voice we hear is not. While re-enactments are part of documentary filmmaking, the specific use of this technique – through voice alone – is different from what we might be used to seeing in this genre. 

As it goes on, it becomes very thought-provoking. This is not just because of the delicate subject matter the photos touch on, but Cole invites us to reflect on more than just his own photography. Both his voiceover and photos prompt us to consider the question of historical trauma and who bears the responsibility for it. In Cole’s words, it is about “making sense when there is none.” Ernest Cole: Lost and Found is at its very best when it focuses on Cole and his photography, the beating heart of the movie. The moments when the film allows us to sit with the photo in front of us with the protagonist explaining their nuances are the most memorable and fascinating of the entire documentary. 

However, Ernest Cole: Lost and Found moves too quickly between the photographs at times. As a bunch of photos flicker in front of our eyes, it becomes increasingly harder to retain and remember what we are seeing. The format of photos paired with a voiceover that does not necessarily talk about what the audience is watching can also easily become repetitive and less effective as the movie goes on. The movie does part these with videos which works particularly well when it uses videos of Cole, giving us a further insight into who the photographer was and what he might want to be remembered for. It does not work so well when it broadens its scope to political events in Cole’s lifetime.  

The movie would have instead benefitted from a tighter focus exclusively on Ernest’s life. Instead, Ernest Cole: Lost and Found tends to relate his story to the bigger historical context. While it is fascinating to hear Cole’s perspective on the events that happened in his lifetime, the introduction of videos featuring various politicians and important figures in South Africa easily feels out of place. It also seems like this was meant to be part of a different film, especially as the audience is most likely familiar with this history already. The non-diegetic music often feels out of place and unauthentic in a documentary setting as the use of the soundtrack is more oriented towards emotionally steering the audience in a certain direction rather than anything else. 

Overall, Ernest Cole: Lost and Found is still a very important film, with its fascinating use of photographs and necessary spotlight on its main character. While I wish the movie was more innovative in the way it tells its story from a filmmaking point of view, its importance cannot be understated especially for those of us in the audience who might have not been familiar with the photographer before watching this movie.

Ernest Cole: Lost and Found will be released in UK & Irish cinemas on March 7, 2025. In the US and Canada, the film is now available to watch on digital and on demand.