Dangerous Ground

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Movie
German title Dangerous Ground
Original title Dangerous Ground
Country of production USA , South Africa
original language English , Zulu
Publishing year 1997
length 92 minutes
Age rating FSK 18
Rod
Director Darrell Roodt
script Greg Latter , Darrell Roodt
production Patricia Charbonnet , Ice Cube , Gillian Gorfil , Darrell Roodt
music Stanley Clarke
camera Paul Gilpin
cut David Heitner
occupation

Dangerous Ground is an American-South African thriller by Darrell Roodt from the year 1997 with Ice Cube in the lead role.

action

Vusi is a social worker who is returning to his home village after 14 years from America to South Africa so that he can attend his father's funeral. He had to leave South Africa 14 years ago because of apartheid , because he had fought against it and had to fear for his life because the state looked at him dangerously at the time.

Since he is the eldest son, he has also become the head of the family and therefore, at the request of his still living mother, has to look for his youngest brother Stephen, who lives in Johannesburg and who has not come and cannot be found. During his search he has to realize how much South Africa has changed. In many ways it is comparable to America and the racism that was prevalent at the time has only become a marginal problem in the meantime. However, during his search he must also realize that one evil has been replaced by another in many ways. That evil is drugs. He realizes how badly a country can deal with the newly won freedom from a lack of experience and ignorance, especially because it has lived in isolation for so long because of apartheid. It is therefore a victim of drug traffickers like Muki, who is looking for his brother because he has not paid back a drug loan. He gives him the ultimatum to pay him $ 15,000 in two days or he would order his brother to murder.

It turns out that his brother, like his girlfriend Karen, are addicted to drugs. They symbolize this time, which is comparable to the USA in the 70s in the black ghettos , when they too gained their freedom in the 60s, but fell victim to drugs due to a lack of experience and ignorance. He finds him with the help of his girlfriend and pays his debts after a very serious reprimand against his brother for his irresponsible behavior. Muki kills his brother anyway as a warning to the others who don't pay on time and leaves him and his girlfriend alive so that they can pass it on, knowing that they will not go to the police because in this act he is also demonstrating that he is also controls the police by treating the police agent present like a subordinate before the eyes of the two after the murder. He also suggests that if he goes this route he will kill his family and that he will get away with it with the help of his control within the police.

Back in his home village, Vusi tells his other brother Ernest what happened, how big the drug problem is in the cities, even bigger than in America, because here an entire country tackled the problem of blacks in the 70s in the ghettos of the cities in the USA has, and how this problem has given people like Muki a power in the country that allows them to control even the police. His solution to his brother's murder is therefore only one of the circumstances. The solution is vengeance. After his brother's funeral, he plans the appropriate revenge together with his brother and his youngest brother's girlfriend. They get weapons and implement this vengeance with a well thought out plan. Muki and his people are killed.

Influenced by these events, Vusi decides to stay in South Africa to deal with the drug problem, which he can do thanks to his knowledge and experience as a social worker in America. He also takes care of the younger brother's girlfriend, whom he now regards as part of the family. Together they leave Johannesburg for their home village.

Reviews

James Berardinelli wrote on ReelViews that the film started “promising”, but then turned into a “typical revenge thriller” with “unintelligent” characters. The best scenes are those in which Vusi Madlazi rediscovered his native South Africa. Berardinelli praised the presentation of Ice Cube, whose qualities also come to the fore in bad films ("Cube has carefully honed his acting abilities to the point where his off-screen personae no longer eclipses the role he's playing"). The portrayal of Elizabeth Hurley is "inefficient".

Roger Ebert wrote in the Chicago Sun-Times on February 14, 1997 that the film began with a "promising idea" which he then rejected "as soon as possible". The plot is "standard", but some details are new and "fascinating". In his role, Ice Cube seems like a tourist who got lost in an action film. The representations of Ving Rhames and Elizabeth Hurley are "much better"; the character played by Rhames is a "sadistic killer", but one with "charm".

Desson Howe wrote in the Washington Post on February 14, 1997 that the story told was "poorly conceived" and "ridiculous".

The magazine TV direkt wrote that the film was "a stupid curd".

background

The film was shot in Soweto , Johannesburg , Coffee Bay ( South Africa ) and Sun City (South Africa). It grossed approximately $ 5.08 million in US cinemas .

swell

  1. ^ Review by James Berardinelli
  2. ^ Review by Roger Ebert
  3. ^ Critique by Desson Howe
  4. ↑ TV direkt 6/2007, page 55.
  5. ^ Filming locations for Dangerous Ground
  6. ↑ Box office / business for Dangerous Ground

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