Once in a while
There comes a film that brings me joy in its purest form
"My mom always said"
"Life was like a box of chocolates"
It makes me forget the flaws in this world
Bill and Ted
"Woah!"
Back to the Future
Paddington
It's not about the end of the world
It's not about racist discrimination
It's about...
"Be excellent to each other"
Among these types of wholesome films
My favourite is undoubtably
The South African classic
The Gods Must be Crazy
It's a film about the adventure of a Namibian Bushman
It's a story about wisdom outside of our modern western culture
It's a story that critiques the over-reliance on technology
But do you care?
Because I don't care about all those
Instead, I want to know
Why this film can make me feel like a child again
So, today, let's take a casual stroll through this film
Let's learn from this film
How to be happy
First, a recap
The Gods Must Crazy is a 1980 South African comedy
It was a massive international success
And reportedly enjoyed three years of screening in the U.S.
The film begins with a documentary style introduction
Where we see civilized people live absurdly complicated lives
Entrapped by the environment of their own design
But 600 miles to the north
There lies the Kalahari desert
A grassy desert so hostile
Only the San people, also known as the Bushmen
Can stay alive with their knowledge of the land
They live happily and content with bare minimum of resources
And little to no contact with the outside world
With no material possessions
There is no greed and no crime
One day, a coke bottle falls from the sky
And lands right in front of a Bushman named Xi
"One day, something felt from the sky"
Not knowing what it is
Xi brings it back home
Only to realize
This symbol of western consumerism is driving people apart
Everyone wants the bottle
And they want it bad
"That night, the family was very unhappy"
Finally, Xi say enough is enough
And he'll carry the bottle to the end of the world
And throws it off the Earth
"Guru said"
"I think the end of the Earth must be very far"
"I think you'll have to walk for 20 days"
"Perhaps 40"
"Xi said, I will start walking tomorrow"
We get to know more about Xi as he travels
How he's willing to spend time to talk to a baboon for stealing the bottle
"Xi said, that is a very evil thing you got there"
It's one of those nice moments
Where a Bushman shows respect for nature
You'd think he's wasting his time
But it worked.
In fact, it works better than chasing afterthe baboon, I bet.
Xi got hungry during his journey
So he hunted a goat, not knowing it is private property
This got him arrested
Meanwhile, terrorists!
Anyway, we are also introduced to Andrew, the biologist
Who's tasked to drive a volunteer teacher
To a remote village in Botswana
After much struggle with the failing of modern technology
And some slapstick comedy
All while nature is laughing at them
The mission ends in failure
And the teacher has to be picked up by someone else
I guess that jealousy is the source of love
As the teacher leaves, the biologist realizes
He's in love with her
Later, the biologist and and his friend are summoned to be the interpreter for the arrested Bushman
Despite their help, Xi is still convicted
3 months in jail.
"He's gonna die, for sure"
"He has never seen a wall in his life"
"Now he got walls all around him"
To save him, the biologist hires Xi as a convicted labourer
"Yes, we want to employ him as an ecological expert"
After some fun times together
They go out for a wildlife survey mission
By complete coincidence
They spot the terrorists
Who are holding the teacher and her students hostage
With Xi's wisdom as a hunter
And the biologist's craft and knowledge
They tranquilize and subdue the terrorists
After the crisis
The biologist confesses his love for the teacher
"yes, you are a very interesting psychological phenomenon"
"And I think you are very sweet"
Xi walks to the end of the Earth and finishes his quest
What a beautiful shot
One thing I noticed about this film
Is that it isn't very funny
Most of the jokes are slapsticks
And they are pretty basic, even for 1980
Granted, a film doesn't have to be funny in order to be fun
But I think it's safe to say
The charm of this film doesn't come from the humor
With that in mind, here is what I think:
First, the film appeals to our emotion
In the lengthy opening sequence
The film bluntly points out many dysfunctions in our western industrialized world
It shows distaste for the clockwork lifestyle we create
"If today is called Monday"
"And the number 730 comes up"
"You'll have to disadapt yourself from your domestic surroundings"
"And readapt yourself to a completely different environment"
While praising the Bushmen for living content and happy lives
"They must be the most contented people in the world"
"They have no crime, no punishment"
"No violence, no laws"
"No police, judges, rulers or bosses"
It's a sentiment many of us share on an emotional level
Sure, logically, we know we don't want to go out into the wild
But the fantasy remains
Many of us city dwellers do imagine ourselves leaving the city lives behind
And go Breath of the Wild
Or Primitive Technology
Which brings me to the second point
The film indulges our naive fantasy
You know how when you were a child
The world seems to be much simpler?
Unless you have a traumatic childhood
You probably didn't grow up feeling the harsh reality of the world
The same way you do today
The film subtly indulges the fantasy world of our childhood
The world is good
"In this world of theirs, nothing is bad or evil"
The world is small
"I think the end of the Earth must be very far"
"I think you'll have to walk for 20 days"
You don't need to pay off your mortgage to be happy
Xi effectively functions as representation of our childhood
He's not knowledgeable
Yet he is clever
Outsmarting others
Much the same way we can out-smart our parents sometimes
He talks to animals, like children
And in a child's fantasy
The animals do understand
Does this film portray a realistic world from the perspective of a Bushman?
Absolutely not
But it's a fantasy, like Santa Claus
We know he doesn't exist
But sometimes, we still pretend he does
Just fo the fun of it
Children are dumb, though, right?
In fact, does that mean this film is making fun of Xi for being dumb?
Or, uncivilized?
It's fairly common in these fish-out-of-water type films
To have the main character be fascinated by modern technology
"This carriage, it moves without horse power"
Outside of it being a cheap and easy joke
It's certainly condescending
Interestingly, the film doesn't play that way, like, at all
In the first scene where Xi meets the biologist and the teacher
He thought they are gods
But before you start to think "Oh no"
He figures out these two are buffoons, not too bright
And he leaves them be
With this commentary
The film directly challenges the superiority of quote-unquote civilized people
Not to mention Xi learns how to drive a car just fine
Well, I mean the biologist can't drive either, so we are even
Conversely, the noble savage trope is also common in movies
And an argument can certainly be made about this film's usage of it
Like many literary tribesmen
The San people do live happier lives
Which is, of course, a largely fictional quality
But at the same time, Xi doesn't fit into the trope neatly
He's not the wiseman character
He never shows to have superior intellect than the biologist
Both of them use their specialized skills to save the day
Xi is also not the comedy sidekick, surprisingly
Vast majority of the slapsticks are done by the biologist, in fact
In short, this film does not indulge in hatred
Everyone is valuable
Xi is just a character, much the same way the biologist is
Xi may rejects modern society, and its concept of private possessions
The biologist gives no mind to it, and seeks love
In their single-minded pursues
They both find their happiness
Like a children's book
It's happily ever after
Isn't this bad?
To pretend racism doesn't exist?
To ignore the political and social atmosphere of South Africa at the time?
To fabricate the happy lives of the Bushmen?
Film, as with other art forms, can indeed be much more than just stories
In today's political climate
It's easy to sink into heated discussions
And forget how to be happy
But not all movies have to be City of God
But sometimes, we need a film to remind us the power of joy
To give us a moment of levity
It doesn't have to be about killing half the universe
It doesn't have to be about life wrapped up in historical moments
Sometimes, a story of a man walking
Can be just as powerful