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What it's about:
It's 1879 and the African kingdom of Kuvukiland is threatened by Redcoat soldiers, who are living off the fat of the land and hunting the sacred springbok. During the wedding ceremony of Hekule (Tongayi Chirisa) - the future king of Kuvukiland - he is given a gemstone by the dying Kunji Balanadin (Kaseran Pillay), one of the Redcoats' cooks. The stone is cursed and causes Hekule to become possessed by the spirit of this mischievous Indian chef. It is up to sangoma and advisor to the tribe, Bones (Leon Schuster), to get rid of this troublesome stone to cure his king.
What we thought of it:
Like death, taxes and politics, you know exactly what you're going to get from a Leon Schuster movie, and in this prequel to the wildly successful Mr. Bones (2001) - the cheap sight gags, over-the-top performances and juvenile references to "pee-pee", "kaka" and "poephol" - are all present and accounted for. And in many ways, these elements alone guarantees that Schuster will find a willing audience for his new movie.
It's almost pointless reviewing a Schuster movie as he seems Teflon-coated when it comes to the general dislike among critics for his brand of witless humour. He has never captured the kind of acclaim South African filmmakers such as Jamie Uys or Darrell Roodt have, and has never needed it.
As he has always said, he makes movies for his audiences, for the millions of South Africans out there who need to escape the mundanity of their daily lives to a world where people do stupid things for their entertainment. And, of course, it’s a winning formula that has seen Schuster rake in millions in box office takings.
With Mr. Bones 2, Schuster has set himself something of a challenge by including a time-travel element to the plot, where his character, the faithful white sangoma, is transported from 1879 to present-day Durban, along with his king Hekule who has been body-snatched by the "evil" spirit of an Indian cook.
Only thing is that this supposed baddie poses as much of a threat as a three-year-old with a water pistol - and poor aim. His various misdeeds include shoving a bunch of kids into a pit toilet, sticking his tongue out a lot, and basically behaving like a very naughty child.
Speaking of which, parents across the country will no doubt happily be leaving their young ones in the custody of Mr. Bones during the school holidays, despite Schuster's well-documented penchant for sexual humour. So be aware that, as fun and harmless as Mr. Bones may seem, he is not beyond toying with vibrators - or getting high.
In amongst the rampant farce and anally obsessed jokes is a movie striving towards meaning (no, really!) Mr. Bones is actually a lonely soul so when he meets the beautiful Reshmi (Leeanda Reddy), he gets a glimpse of the life he could have. And the conclusion of his ridiculous journey is actually sweeter than the 90 minutes leading up to it may have hinted at.
Yes, the quality of the gags are as pitiful as they come, the performances are negligible (although it's never a good thing when shoddy work by the extras is noticeable) and there are awkward jokes about baboons and primates, but Schuster's creation, with his mismatched eyes and wonky teeth, has an undeniable idiotic charm – just don't expect him to add any meaning to your life.
