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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!mit-eddie!think!harvard!tomczak
From: tomczak@harvard.ARPA (Bill Tomczak)
Newsgroups: net.movies,net.nlang.africa
Subject: Re: Two films on the !Kung
Message-ID: <367@harvard.ARPA>
Date: Sat, 21-Sep-85 01:53:12 EDT
Article-I.D.: harvard.367
Posted: Sat Sep 21 01:53:12 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 22-Sep-85 06:36:08 EDT
References: <539@im4u.UUCP> <542@im4u.UUCP>
Reply-To: tomczak@harvard.UUCP (Bill tomczak)
Organization: Aiken Computation Laboratory, Harvard
Lines: 38
Xref: watmath net.movies:7730 net.nlang.africa:124
Summary: 

In article <542@im4u.UUCP> jsq@im4u.UUCP (John Quarterman) writes:
>As I pointed out to Prentiss earlier today, the same criticisms
>apply to The Emerald Forest and Gone with the Wind.  I liked
>the former and detest the latter.

I just saw "The Gods Must Be Crazy" and "Emerald Forest" within
two days of each other this week and have found the discussion
on these films in this group very interesting.  Now.....

I liked both of these films with certain reservations, expecially
in the case of Emerald Forest.  I was actually a little surprised
at the criticism of Gods.  This may reflect some considerable
ignorance on my part concerning the situation in South Africa.
Actually, it never ocurred to me to connect Apartheid to the locale
of Gods.  (I SAID I was ignorant!  no flames please).  In comparing
Gods and Forest my reaction was that at least in Gods the natives
were treated with some respect.  They were pictured as peace loving
and at one with the world around them.  The fact that this flies
in the face of their situation because of apartheid was not good
news to me.  The political aspects of this movie become sinister indeed.
However, apart from the political implications of the movie, I still
feel that the !kung were accorded respect as a community.

Now Emerald Forest, on the other hand seemed to do all it could to
clean up, caricature and otherwise make the native cultures palatable
to a yuppie American audience.  I saw this movie with a friend who
knew a little about the culture of the "Fierce People".  They in
particular seemed totally stripped of any respectability.  The
ceremonies of the "Invisible People" seemed to me very white-ified.
I know nothing of the cultures of these peoples, but after working
only a little with the folk arts of various cultures, the only time
I've seen that clean of even ritual choreography was done on a stage
for an audience.  In spite of this, I liked the theme of the movie and
the message it seemed to be getting across.

Sorry this is so long....

Bill tomczak@harvard.{ARPA, UUCP}


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