The Gods Must Be Crazy (1984)

I feel so lucky because I was given the chance to find and watch this movie right before it was deleted from Netflix. The poster was actually a turndown for me until something encouraged me to check this movie out on IMDb. It has a good rating. So I decided to download and watch this movie. And WOW! Suddenly I fell in love with this movie. It was a simple yet very entertaining and informative movie. It was filmed like a documentary, btw. It didn't provide you with so many great cinematography or screen quality since it's an 80's movie but the story and comedy was really great. It was so amusing. I think it's a universal comedy because I'm quite sure all people from every country, with different kind of ages will have a lot of laugh while watching this movie. I hope someday I'm gonna have a chance to watch this movie again. It deserve a rewatch from me.

Okay, The Gods Must Be Crazy (TGMBC) isn't just about (a) Coke (bottle.) But, it certainly pushed things into place.The very first time, and only other time, I've seen this before last night, was in first run theatres, which had to be in 1984 when I was 10. My father took me to see this, and even though a lot of it went over my head, what stuck with me was his deep laughter throughout the entire feature. And it was contagious; I was laughing hard, because he was. I was having a great time, like he was.Fast forward, nearly 30-years later, to my follow-up viewing. Wow. This was hard to get through. Now, that said, it is funny, and purely innocent – it's almost 100% slapstick comedy and basically G, if not for the native nudity. Also, despite the incredibly low budget, it was inventive and obscenely original.I say it was a chore to watch again – and I probably will never see this another time, due to the pacing and age. The movie was made on/around 1980 and definitely did it broadcast that year. TGMBC took so long to get through and was not a short movie as it probably could've been.Well, TGMBC did insert many story lines that VERY nicely came together. Even with small resources, the many stories and characters did intrigue me. It was so 1930s screwball comedy, but with a non-typical setting (Africa) and unknown actors.TGMBC tells the tale(s) of a 100% isolated African Bushman who must rid his tribe of a Coke® bottle that the Bushmen wrongfully thought was a gift from their gods when it was merely thrown out of a passing plane. He takes it upon himself to take the eventually labeled: "evil" object to the edge of the Earth and drop it off. Which, I guess, means they still believe the Earth's flat?Meanwhile, renegades invade the land and a poop-specialist, a school teacher and the government gets involved to take down said rebels. I literally summed up an almost two-hour comedy, but it's more fun to watch how all these stories intersect and pan out.Only…the core of the screenplay, that faithful, "bad" Coke® bottle's own story kinda gets the rush treatment in the end. Perhaps, because they ran out of what little funds they had…?Obviously, it's not to be taken seriously – it is slapstick comedy all-around, after all. But, it is interesting enough with the Out-of-America setting and multiple story lines that were very well crafted. In addition, the narrator, which I loved by the way, tells many interesting stories and thoroughly educates me on the land, culture and animals I am unfamiliar with.And finally, the lead Bushman, Xi, or Xixo depending on who you trust, was awesome in this. A perfect performance, and stand by that.I would recommend The Gods Must Be Crazy with the recommendation that you know what you're getting yourself into.

An empty Coke bottle, a scientist who's extremely awkward with women, and a terrorist group. They all come together in this delightful South African film.OK, not very realistic, granted, but then when was slapstick comedy ever supposed to be?If you need a movie to simply watch to get your thoughts off your struggles at work, home, wherever, and especially if you want a movie that you don't want to take seriously, this is the one for you.An African bushman, while trying to throw an empty Coke bottle off the edge of the supposedly flat earth, encounters a scientist who is having one awkward moment after another with the new school teacher. After he accidentally drops her in the lake, they have to spend the night alone. Then to make matters worse, his jeep gets caught high up in a tree! No wonder the bushman thinks that "the gods must be crazy"!They eventually join forces unintentionally to save the school children from a terrorist and his gang. Then there's the two gang members and their non-stop game of cards! Don't take this movie seriously! And don't give up on it after the first 10 minutes either! It appears at first to be a Nat Geo documentary, but stay with it and just enjoy it, and realize how crazy we all are at times!

Years ago I caught this film on cable television, and watched about twenty minutes of it before switching off. I thought it was the biggest pile of rubbish that I'd ever seen, what with speeded up Keystone Cops slapstick in just about every scene, and a guy in a Rhino suit pretending to be the real thing. Add to that the documentary style narrative and you have, for me at the time, one of the worst films ever. But I've watched it just now and must say I was well wrong. I must have been in a bad mood or something, because the Gods Must Be Crazy is wonderful.A pilot flying over Botswana throws and empty coke bottle out of his window, and it ends up landing in a village of bushmen. Not knowing what it is, their leader, played by a real Bushman called N!Xau, finds many uses for it before it's usefullness inspires jealousy and envy. Now seeing it as an Evil Thing, he tries throwing it back to the Gods, whereupon of course gravity takes hold and it bounces off of his son's head. N!Xau then decides to head off to the edge of the world and throw it away.Meanwhile a Communist leader attempts a coup but fails, and the authorities chase him and his men into Botswana.Also meanwhile a South African gentleman and his mechanic are asked to pick up a white woman who wants to teach people in a nearby village. The things is, this guy (Mr Stane, I think his name was) gets very nervous in the company of women, and his jeep, dubbed the anti-Christ by the mechanic, doesn't help matters.All these elements come together, of course. N!Xau is arrested for killing a goat (he has no concept of ownership) and is only helped out by Mr Stane and the mechanic (who can speak N!Xau's language). While out in the wilderness working away, they spot, using a telescope, that the teacher and her pupils have been kidnapped by the Communist leader, who hopes he can make it out of the country while using them as hostages. Here, N!Xau knowledge of stalking comes into play.This movie is very odd, but also very entertaining and sometimes touching. You've got to envy N!Xau's simple life, and the bemused look on his face at the idiotic things people in the developed world do is a wonder to behold. So is his language, a series of clicks mixed with spoken words. You get used to the speeded up sequences (Keystone cops rocket launcher attack?) and it becomes clear that there is some genuine humour behind all the slapstick. The scene at the end when N!Xau throws the bottle away in silent contemplation is a cracker (yes - he does find the end of the world, sort of). He must be the least neurotic film character I've ever seen.Highly daft and slightly cheesy, with great cinematography (which was probably missing all those years before DVD), you come away from this film feeling a lot better, which doesn't happen often.