Common Sense Media Review
By S. Jhoanna Robledo
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
1980s film comments on modern society; guns, stereotypes.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 10+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
The Gods Must Be Crazy
What's the Story?
In THE GODS MUST BE CRAZY, a pilot absentmindedly drops an empty Coke bottle into the middle of the Kalahari Desert, where it's retrieved by an Indigenous tribe. They've never seen anything like it and quickly find many helpful uses for this unusual object. But soon they're fighting over it, and one of them named Xi (N!xau) decides, for the good of the tribe, that he must get rid of it. He's soon embroiled in a madcap adventure that includes a bumbling anthropologist (Marius Weyers), a new schoolteacher (Sandra Prinsloo), and an attempted coup led by a dangerous revolutionary.
Is It Any Good?
This 1980s comedy is full of clichés about African peoples. The Gods Must Be Crazy creates ridiculous situations by making its Indigenous San characters look naive but wise, which strips them of any deeper humanity. Indeed, San characters have no dialogue, and Black African characters are drawn in the broadest strokes, either innocent or violent, but nothing in between. It's a high-concept comedy ... but who do the laughs come at the expense of?
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about modern society. How do you think our world might look to someone like Xi in The Gods Must Be Crazy, who encounters modern artifacts like a Coca-Cola bottle for the first time?
What do you think about the film's depictions of Black, White, and Indigenous peoples in southern Africa? In what ways do these characters fall into the "White savior" cliché, and how might it have been avoided?
Is there too much violence in this movie to be considered a "family film"? Does it make a difference that the gunfights and chase scenes are portrayed in a comedic way? Why, or why not?
Movie Details
- In theaters : July 13, 1984
- On DVD or streaming : June 1, 2004
- Cast : Marius Weyers , N!xau , Sandra Prinsloo
- Director : Jamie Uys
- Studio : Sony Pictures
- Genre : Comedy
- Topics : Friendship
- Run time : 109 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : September 30, 2025
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