SOUTH AFRICA: Liz Hurley and Ice Cube talk about their roles in new film, "The Spear"

Record ID: 455330

  • Title: SOUTH AFRICA: Liz Hurley and Ice Cube talk about their roles in new film, "The Spear"
  • Date: 11th September 1995
  • Summary: HURLEY AND ICE CUBE PERFORMING SCENE FROM FILM
  • Embargoed: 26th September 1995 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA
  • Country: South Africa
  • Reuters ID: LVA5SA0DZ9VEUHOC07WLDPS3DFI
  • Story Text: Elizabeth Hurley has been taking a break from her modelling work for Estee Lauder to star in a film about the South African drugsunderworld, with award-winning rap artist Ice Cube.
    Directed by South African film maker Darrell Roodt 'Sarafina', 'Cry the Beloved Country', The Spear (working title) tells the story of a South African exile (Ice Cube) returns to his homeland to bury his father after twelve years in the United States. As he returns to the new South Africa, he finds an unrecognisable country struggling to cope with a new set of problems - crime and drugs. He embarks on a search for his missing brother, who has double-crossed the leader of a drugs cartel, accompanied by his brother's stripper girlfriend (Elizabeth Hurley). Their quest takes them from the rural beauty of the Transkei to the underworld in the drug-infested alleys of Johannesburg.
    Having already made acclaimed films about the apartheid years, Roodt told Reuters that he wanted very much to make a film that mirrors the state of the country since the end of apartheid and democratic elections. In making the film, he said that authenticity was very important to make the film relevant for young South Africans.
    "When I'm directing Elizabeth Hurley, I'm acutely aware of that South African accent, I want it to be real," Roodt said, adding that he thought Hurley did a great job.
    Hurley said that she had enjoyed researching the film, had already managed to find time for a visit to tribal villages and hoped to get to know the country better.
    The film will feature music from local musicians who are not yet well-known outside the country.
    "It's a shame they haven't reached America yet", Ice Cube said, adding that he hopes the music business will open up in the new South Africa.
    The shoot began on August 7 at the Sun City resort in Bophuthatswana, with additional location work in Gauteng, Soweto and Transkei.
    One of the first films to focus on post-apartheid life in South Africa, The Spear examines the changes affecting the country's white culture as well as increasing threats from crime and drugs.
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