Themes: Fathers and Sons, Fathers and Daughters, Mothers and Sons
Main Cast: Sandra Prinsloo, Marius Weyers, N!xau, Lena Farugia, Hans Strydom, Eiros, Nadies
Release Year: 1988
Country: BW/US/ZA
Run Time: 97 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG
Plot
This sequel to the enormous international hit The Gods Must Be Crazy isn't quite as fresh and enchanting as the original, but it is still a garden of small delights. N!Xau, the Kalihari bushman who starred in the first film, is separated from his children while on a hunting expedition in the desert. The emphasis is on the kids, who are kidnaped by elephant poachers. This activity is counterpointed with the adventures of the film's "civilized" characters, transplanted New York attorney Lena Farugia and zoologist Hans Strydom, who find themselves stranded in the desert (their adventures are similar to those experienced by fish-out-of-water Linda Kozlowski in Crocodile Dundee). Meanwhile, a couple of soldiers who've wandered away from a border war devote their time to capturing, and escaping from, each other. As in the first film, the various subplots converge, with N!Xau once more emerging as the hero of the hour. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Erick Bowen - Mateo; Treasure Tshabalala - Timi; Pierre Van Pletzen - George; Lourens Swanepoel - Brenner; Andrew Dibb - Computer Operator; Lesley Fox - Ann's Secretary; Ken Marshall - Convener; Shimane Mpepela - Man on Bike; Sandra Prinsloo; Simon Sabela - General; Peter Tunstall - Chief Game Warden; Marius Weyers; Richard Loring - Jack
Credit
Jamie Uys - Director, Renee Engelbrecht - Editor, Ivan Hall - Editor, Steven Kemper - Editor, Charles Fox - Composer (Music Score), Rose Bruins - Makeup, Buster Reynolds - Cinematographer, Boet Troskie - Producer, Joi Design - Set Designer, Jamie Uys - Screenwriter
Two elephant poachers traveling in a truck on which Xixo's children are stuck
A man and a woman are stuck in the desert
Two soldiers fighting each other
The story starts with two elephant poachers crossing the area in which Xixo's tribe lives. Curious about their vehicle, Xixo's son Xiri and daughter Xisa climb into the water tank trailer and are subsequently taken for an involuntary ride as the poachers continue. Xixo follows the truck on foot, determined to retrieve his children.
A young lawyer named Ann Taylor arrives at a bush clinic to participate in a lecture. Since she has some spare time, she accepts the invitation by a young man to take a joy ride in his two-seat, twin engined Ultra Light aircraft. They go to see scientist, Dr. Stephen Marshall. He exchanges places with the other pilot so he and Ann Taylor continue on, but the plane crashes, stranding them both in the middle of the Kalahari desert. In addition, war is brewing, personified by a lost Cuban soldier (Mateo) and his Angolan enemy (Timi), who repeatedly attempt to take each other prisoner.
In the course of the movie, all these people cross paths with Xixo and/or his children. Finally, the plot culminates in the poachers capturing Xixo, Taylor, Marshall, and the two soldiers. Xixo manages to save them, and one of the poachers, who is actually a nice guy kept under the heel of his boss, gives Xixo directions to his children. The boss poacher is captured, both soldiers come to terms and part amicably, Taylor and Marshall return to civilization (though not without an embarrassing accident), and Xixo and his family are happily reunited.
