The Great Dance: A Hunter's Story (2000) User Reviews

Good Documentary

[taproot · 7/10 · 9 December 2000]

This documentary catches three hunters, part of a Bushmen Tribe living in South Africa, hunting for their village and themselves. The film traces their movements as they track animals, and periodically stop and relate the stories to each other that accompany these animals on their trek. The closeness of nature and the appreciation of the animals they hunt winds its way through the film. One hunter ran after his prey for 4 hours until the prey simply ran out of stamina and resistance. The films also mentioned that the tribe's license to hunt had been revoked by the South African government after the film had been completed. It's a film to reflect on, and the tribe actually seems to be more civilized than our tribes. taproot

DVD please

[jwelch666 · 10/10 · 14 July 2006]

A great movie -- if only it could be released on DVD in US/Canada Zone format? I see it available on PAL in the UK for $70, but could we not get it in the US for a more reasonable price, please?

I'm still amazed as the Bushmen hunters chase down their prey, tracking and running through the Kalahari Desert after it for hours and hours and miles and miles until finally they catch up to it. By then the kudu is so thoroughly exhausted from the pursuit it cannot even walk away from the relentless hunters, who can now kill it and return home with the meat, probably another 100 miles.

I want to own and show this movie to my friends. Can it be made available on DVD?

One of the best post apartheid documentaries

[mpb2009 · 31 August 2004]

The great dance is characterised by stunning visuals. The film is the winner of more than 35 international awards. It is a visual poem on the San hunters, who sustain a small band of nomads in the Kalahari Desert. Strictly speaking not a conventional documentary the filmmakers have inter-cut documentary footage with highly original and semi-abstract material so the hard core of fact is surrounded with lyrical evocations of San legends, creating an intriguing visual texture. Black-and-white footage has been combined with richly coloured images, giving the film a poetic dimension rarely seen in documentaries. The directors, Craig and Damon Foster, have created a sublime visual poem with this film, as well as their latest, Cosmic Africa.