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Collection ID
1341
Director:
Jamie Uys
Starring:
N!xau, Lena Farugia, Hans Strydom, Eiros, Nadies
Genre:
Comedy
Studio:
Elrina Investment
Release date:
1989
Rated:
PG
Language (Country):
Afrikaans, English, Ungwatsi
(South Africa, Botswana, USA)
Summary:
South African director Jamie Uys caught lightning in a bottle with "The Gods Must Be Crazy"--a Coke bottle, to be specific. This slaphappy collection of goofy pratfalls and culture-clash gags became an enormous international smash, and made a sort of star out of the Bushman selected to play the central role, the completely ingratiating N!Xau. He plays a man, unaware of white culture, who finds a Coca-Cola bottle in the Kalahari (dropped by a passing pilot) and promptly has his life turned around by this mystical object. The movie looks slipshod and even amateurish at times, yet its attitude is so bubbly it's hard to resist. Proving that physical comedy remains a true international language, millions of moviegoers around the world drank it up.
"The Gods Must Be Crazy II" (1989) returns N!Xau to the bizarre world of the white man, this time in a slicker plot (and a with a bigger budget) that, perhaps predictably, yields fewer real belly laughs than the first time around. Director Jamie Uys sticks to his cherished notions that tribesmen are wiser than civilized people, and that fast-motion comedy is inherently funny. The storyline begins with N!Xau's innocent Bushman searching for his lost children; he then gets sidetracked by subplots. The humor is basic, but in best silent-movie tradition Uys prepares his set-pieces with elaborate care, and he understands the value of the long-delayed pay-off. "--Robert Horton"
My Rating:
My Review: This movie, like the Coke bottle that falls out of the sky; arrived out of nowhere (literally). An unknown writer/director (Jamie Uys) creates a fantastic narrated tale full of colorful characters. An humorous and heartfelt story set in the Kalahari. When the gods mistakenly drop something out of the sky, the main character decides to return it to the gods. This is the story of his journey to the 'end of the world', the characters he meets along the way, and his adventure in a very strange land. The characters, acting, and story are all great. The film work is excellent. I really enjoyed the way they sped up some of the scenes. It enhanced the comedic effect tremendously. A very funny modern movie in the tradition of the silent film era. Well worth watching. - In the gods must be crazy II, we're rewarded with another movie that's as upbeat as the sky is blue. A follow-up to "The gods must be crazy" by Jamie Uys. Not as good, but still fantastic. The vignette motif repeated. Great characters and a splendid story. More satire than the first one. Clashing cultures emphasized. Modern vs traditional. A good sequel to a classic.
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