Armed with fierce ambition but lacking the means to match it, Lerato and Malebo Maseko hustle through life, determined to rise above their circumstances. They chase success with grit and sisterly tenacity, inching closer to the life they’ve always dreamed of. But just as triumph seems within reach, they find themselves entangled in a murder investigation that threatens to unravel everything. Reabetswe Moeti-Vogt directed Real Estate Sisters.
Plot
Real Estate Sisters is about two sisters, Lerato and Malebo, who sit in a stark police interrogation room, their faces drawn with fear. They hadn’t expected their ambition to lead them here. As investigators lay out the evidence, the events that brought them to this moment begin to unfold, starting two weeks earlier.
Lerato and Malebo were barely keeping their struggling real estate firm afloat. Lerato, the more driven of the two, hustled from dawn till dusk, managing to close deals even on rundown properties. Malebo, however, was distracted, emotionally entangled with a man who wouldn’t commit, neither in love nor in business.
Just when Lerato thought things couldn’t get worse, an unexpected call offered a sliver of hope: an interview at a prestigious real estate agency. But that hope quickly soured; the role was merely for a receptionist. Defeated, she wandered into a chance encounter with Stone, charismatic, rich, and seemingly everything Lerato had been chasing. Their relationship bloomed fast. Lavish gifts, expensive dinners, and a promise of a better life came pouring in.
Back in Malebo’s world, things were falling apart. She lost her job, and her on-again, off-again partner remained as unreliable as ever. Then, Stone made a grand gesture: he gave Lerato a house to sell, promising a generous 15% commission. Hope returned. Lerato, determined to make it work, listed the property under her agency and brought Lebza in on the deal.
But during a show house, the dream curdled into a nightmare. Lerato discovered a corpse hidden inside the fridge.
At the same time, headlines across the country screamed about the disappearance of Sizwe Dambuza, the son of a powerful public figure, with an R100,000 reward offered for any leads. Lerato, panicked and unable to contact Stone, was torn between loyalty, fear, and survival. Lebza urged her to report the body, but Lerato hesitated.
Rather than go to the police, the sisters tried to press on. A wealthy “trust fund” buyer expressed interest, and Lerato saw a way out. Lebza, now re-engaged to her ex and eager to secure a piece of the windfall, demanded half the commission. Greed began to seep in, and the sisters doubled down.
But Stone wasn’t who he claimed to be. Behind his polished exterior was a man at the centre of a drug trafficking investigation. And when the police finally raided the house, they found the corpse. It was Sizwe Dambuza.
Back in the interrogation room, the sisters were cornered. The choices they had made—the secrets, the lies, the silence—had woven them into a web of crime and deception.
Now, faced with the truth, only one question remained: Could Lerato and Malabo talk their way out of this, or had their ambition finally cost them everything?
Cast
The Real Estate Sisters featured a relatively straightforward cast, with the actors making a commendable effort to ground an otherwise far-fetched, at times whimsical plot in realism. Gina Koffman and Leera Mthethwa led the film as the dynamic central duo, bringing depth and authenticity to their roles as ambitious but flawed sisters caught in a spiral of crime and deception.
Supporting performances by Karin Van Der Laag, Lerato Makhetha, Sibongile Nojila, and others added texture to the story, helping to flesh out the world around the protagonists. While the narrative leaned into melodrama, the cast’s commitment to their roles lent the film a sense of credibility and emotional resonance.
Language
Real Estate Sisters was predominantly performed in Zulu and English.
Summary
The Real Estate Sisters is a fun, fast-paced drama that keeps you hooked, even if the story gets a bit over-the-top. The lead actresses do a solid job, and the themes around ambition and consequences hit home. It’s not perfect, but it’s entertaining.
