In the Shadow of Kilimanjaro (1986)

Because of a severe drought in Kenya in 1984, ninety thousand starving baboons go on a murderous rampage, killing humans and animals alike.

Director:

Raju Patel

Writers:

T. Michael Harry, Jeffrey M. Sneller

Stars:

John Rhys-Davies, Timothy Bottoms, Irene Miracle

Cast

Cast overview:
John Rhys-Davies	...	Chris Tucker
Timothy Bottoms	...	Jack Ringtree
Irene Miracle	...	Lee Ringtree
Michele Carey	...	Ginny Hansen
Leonard Trolley	...	Colonel Maitland
Patty Foley	...	Lucille Gagnon
Calvin Jung	...	Mitushi Uto
Don Blakely	...	Julius Odom
Jim Boeke	...	Gagnon
Patrick Gorman	...	Eugene Cruz
Mark Watters	...	Carlyle Bandy
Carl Vundla	...	District Officer Tshombe

Storyline

There's a big drought in Africa. Food and water are scarce. 90,000 wild baboons suddenly start attacking humans and eating them in order to survive. Some people find themselves being hunted by the starving monkeys and must do whatever they can to stay alive.

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Plot Keywords:

kenya | drought | baboon | hoard | environmentalist | 

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Taglines:

Violent death was the easy way out!

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

UK Kenya

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 May 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

En la sombra del Kilimanjaro

Filming Locations:

Kenya

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$181,410, 11 May 1986, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$181,410

Company Credits

Production Co:

Film Corporation of Kenya,Intermedia Films,Mansfield Productions

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film takes place in 1984.

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Connections

Featured in Trailer Trauma 3: 80s Horrorthon (2017)

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Soundtracks

In the Shadow of the Kilimanjaro
Words and Music by Chieli Minucci & Allan Smallwood

User Reviews

A cool twist on a zombie movie... with monkeys! Also based on true events.

"In The Shadow of Kilimanjaro" has a lot of good things going for it. The story, like every script that is based on true events, has some facts embellished but is convincing and flows well. The basic premise is that in Kenya in 1984, there was this "perfect storm" of events that lead to a terrifying spectacle. A severe drought killed off much of the vegetation and small animals in the country. What it didn't kill were thousands of baboons, which eventually turned into hungry mobs, devouring anything in their path, including humans.

The animal training and the shots of wildlife are really amazing, lending a lot of credibility to the story. There are literally hundreds of animals on the screen and you think to yourself that the shots of these apes all running in one direction must have been stock footage or computer effects but no. There was extensive work when the film was made to train all of these animals to perform for some key scenes in the movie that are quite impressive.

The film almost plays like a zombie film, with hordes of man-eating creatures who can't be reasoned with just waiting for the time to strike and in that aspect the film can be quite effective. Where it doesn't quite work is that the film doesn't go far enough into the horror genre, with many shots of potentially shocking attacks being abruptly cut. This might have been done for budgetary reasons, but nonetheless they leave you wanting so much more than they deliver. The ending also comes very abruptly and isn't quite as satisfying as it should be. The film is nevertheless quite good and if you're a fan of zombie films, this is one of those stories that didn't want to be a variation on the genre, but ended up being on. If you've ever wanted to see a good animal-based horror story, look no further. (On VHS, October 5, 2012)