The Naked Prey (1966)

A group of men are on safari. One of the party refuses to give a gift to a tribe they encounter. The tribe is offended, seizes the party, and one-by-one, kills all but one of the safari ... See full summary »

Director:

Cornel Wilde

Writers:

Clint Johnston, Don Peters

Stars:

Cornel Wilde, Gert van den Bergh, Ken Gampu

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Cornel Wilde	...	The Man
Gert van den Bergh	...	Man #2
Ken Gampu	...	Leader of the warriors
Patrick Mynhardt	...	Safari overseer
Bella Randles	...	Little girl
Morrison Gampu	...	Tribe leader
Sandy Nkomo	...	Warrior
Eric Mcanyana	...	Warrior
John Marcus	...	Warrior
Richard Mashiya	...	Warrior
Franklyn Mdhluli	...	Warrior
Fusi Zazayokwe	...	Warrior
Joe Dlamini	...	Warrior
Jose Sithole	...	Warrior
Horace Gilman	...	Warrior

Storyline

A group of men are on safari. One of the party refuses to give a gift to a tribe they encounter. The tribe is offended, seizes the party, and one-by-one, kills all but one of the safari members in various creative and horrifying ways. The last surviving member is given "The Lion's Chance" by the tribal leader to be hunted down by a party of tribal warriors. Naked and weaponless he is set loose, the hunters hot on his heels, beginning a life-or-death hunt through wild Africa.

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Plot Keywords:

tribe | safari | lion | africa | warrior | 

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Taglines:

Stripped, turned loose like a wild beast ... a manhunt of indescribable terror and screaming suspense!

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

South Africa USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 June 1966 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der Todesmutige

Filming Locations:

Africa

Box Office

Budget:

$900,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Sven Persson Films, Theodora Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In October 1808 Colter set out to trap with another member of Lisa's company, John Potts. Foolishly, they returned to the Three Forks area, where they were able to amass almost a ton of fur. However, at Jefferson Fork they were attacked by Blackfeet who shot and killed Potts and took the furs. Colter was captured and given a chance to live. He was stripped naked and given 30 seconds' headstart to run for his life. Colter outran all of them except for one. When they were the only two left, Colter turned upon him and killed the man with his own spear. Colter ran for five miles across a rocky plain between the Jefferson and Madison Forks. Once he reached the Madison River, he dived under a mass of logs and beaver lodges and hid in an air pocket in the icy water until nightfall. He went six miles downstream and climbed up a sheer cliff. He walked, still without any clothes, the 250 miles to Fort Raymond, where he arrived after 11 days.

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Goofs

When Wilde is surrounded by the snakes we plainly hear Rattlesnake sound effects. None of the snakes are rattlers since they aren't indigenous to Africa.

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Connections

Referenced in Mad Men: Far Away Places (2012)

User Reviews

In the Top 10

What a rare and glorious film. The Africans, the Whites, the Arabs -- all thrashing about a primitive world blindly lurching for profit, vengeance, pride, and redemption. The animal scenes are bit canned, but the hardy authenticity of tribal southern Africa is marvellous. You can tell these are not extras from Culver City. It's a movie not afraid of blood and savagery. You root for the cunning and feel the fear on both sides. And the ending does make sense to those who know that men appreciate even an enemy who has fought bravely.