Liyana (2017) Movie Script
1
Can you pass it here?
- Goodnight.
- Goodnight.
Liyana is sleeping
She wakes up.
Hmm.
Hey cow, wake up.
Can you see that?
The bull says, "Mmm".
The sunrise was so beautiful.
What is the thing that changes color?
Chameleon
It was going, but it have
it's real own color
it was just
silver
and had glitters.
- Liyana climbed on top of the bull.
And then they continued with the journey.
- Go, go!
- Liyana was up the hill.
Then...
At the top of the hill.
- Ocean.
- Wow.
I've never seen this before.
And they said...
What a huge and a beautiful river.
They saw the wale going
coming out
and making a big splash again.
Liyana is looking out, thinking.
Where does the water end?
She is imagening that,
maybe there are kings and queens under there.
And they have alot of nice clothes,
and money, and good food.
The bull is wanting to drink
It must go drink.
The water tastes like salty armpits.
It's too salty.
It's too sunny and it's nice,
and she's walking there.
Maybe she forgot about the thieves.
She's just enjoying the beach.
- Okay.
Okay, I think that's enough.
Let's move on.
So let's see what you've written,
a few of our poems,
Just a few lines.
Let's hear what you've done.
All right.
Follow the tracks, the twins need you...
What are you doing? What are you doing?
Hey people
- We must listen
to one another now.
Please, please.
Thank you
Thank you.
Follow the tracks. The twins need you.
Sing her song
Danger far away. Scared to go.
Danger. Darkness. Afraid to fail.
- Danger, darkness,
afraid to fail.
Nice, nice images.
Yes, yes.
Thank you.
- Then she remembers.
My grandmother send me.
Hey bull, let's go.
And Liyana came to the desert
And...
It was hot and the wind was blowing.
Liyana felt so hungry
And the bull was thirsty.
And then the hyenas come.
- They followed Liyana from a distance.
Even the hyenas are hungry
so much hungry.
Liyana starts making fire.
Liyana was so hungry.
She's dizzy.
- Sitting there,
looking at the bull.
So hungry.
What if I just like cut a small piece from my bull?
Or the tail, because the bull is so big and
it can still walk without a tail.
She takes out her knife.
And the cow
gets cross
and cross, and cross.
Run!
- Jump!
- And they run back away.
She didn't know there was a hyena behind her
just about to
take her.
- Even though
she was so hungry...
she knew the bull was her friend.
She says sorry to the bull.
- And then they go to sleep.
- They go to sleep.
no food.
And in the morning they wake up and go.
Climb on the scale.
Stand at attention.
- 28 KGs.
Big tummy
No
Climb up on the bed.
Thanks for coming to the clinic today
I am nurse Dlamini.
Just put your hands here, my boy.
There will be no shots.
Nothing will pinch you.
Open your mouth.
Stick out your tongue
OK, breathe
Again
As for today you are well...
But continue to make an effort Mkhuleko, you see
to eat well
Because it's what is going to keep you healthy.
Alright Mkhuleko, you can go sit down now.
Here are your pills.
So, are you Thulani?
All right.
We're just going to go over a few things.
Where do you live?
At home
At home?
Thank you, Thulani.
We're going to take some blood
for your blood test.
Thulani, it won't hurt.
We're just going to quickly take some blood.
just a little drop.
It will let us know if you have HIV.
Understand?
- It is hot, no water, no food.
Liyana's walking, walking, walking...
She's tired.
She saw a shadow pass.
- She looks up.
- The vulture's are flying,
waiting for Liyana,
so Liyana's going.
- They know Liyana is getting weak.
Then she
trips
You can have a seat here.
Hello, my child.
Ok, my dear
we're going to try to
sit up here.
Hold it tight.
Now we wait for a little while.
So, how does it work if...
If the result is negative
the line will appear here on this side.
So the test is complete now.
It shows that.
the virus hasn't been found.
Thank you.
Thank you very much.
Go well, my child.
- Then...
she woke up
When she looks down there
What is that?
Many mangoes.
They are ripe and they're all ready.
And they eat, eat, eat, eat, eat...!
She climbs through the tree,
throwing mangoes for the cow.
Cow eats and eats.
- Bull?
Have you seen a bull eating mangoes?
No, the cow is eating grass.
- Liyana says...
Oh, nice shade underneath the tree.
- She says,
You know what?
I'm not going any farther.
And then she falls asleep.
She is dreaming about beautiful things.
Dreaming about her grandmother.
She hears something.
Ah, and climbs the tree.
Go faster, faster, faster!
Such a beautiful bird.
- The peacock is so nice.
And it's singing a beautiful song.
That's almost like the grandmother's voice.
She remembers her grandmother's words.
"Overcome fear".
"Hold on to hope".
Liyana knows,
it is telling her to keep going.
- So, Liyana has faced very dangerous animals
along her journey.
She has faced
tiredness and hunger.
And now, she's got to face
her greatest challenge ever.
You're gonna make something
big and dangerous.
What is Liyana scared of?
You will decide...
Like this.
You can make a big, big, big monster.
- She walks.
She walks, she walks.
To the top of the mountain.
- And they saw a huge cave.
- She sees the thieves leaving.
Now she has a chance.
Creeping, creeping,
creeping, creeping, creeping.
She doesn't know what's hiding in the cave.
It's dark inside
And it's smelly and quiet.
She remembers her grandmother saying,
"Don't be afraid"
"Be brave".
And then she sneaks in.
Her brothers see her
Liyana!
Many children
They are all in cages
She sees a chain on the ground.
What is tied there?
- The bull starts sniffing.
She says, "Ssh".
The thing comes out
It was huge!
- The fight begins.
Run!
Fight!
- Liyana picked up something and goes.
Then the cow.
And then the monster hit the bull.
And then the bull goes...
- Liyana says to the bull,
"Wake up, wake up, wake up".
Shaking the bull and the bull didn't wake up
And then Liyana
stood up and fight.
- Liyana's down.
The monster comes to eat her.
Then bam!
The thieves are back.
They shoot in the air
and the monster goes
gets back in the cave and sits
The monster hates the thieves
because they don't feed him
- And then they hold Liyana.
- They take Liyana
and the bull
The thieves say to Liyana
we'll sell all the children
and you!
And they say...
We're going to our master now
We're going to come back.
...sooner or later."
And they go.
Liyana's just struggling.
Trying to get out of the rope,
but the rope is tight.
She's trying, trying, struggling.
- Now it seems like
there's nothing she can do.
What can she do?
Sit there and wait for the thieves.
- Liyana says to the bull,
"I'm sorry that I have brought you here.
"Now they are gonna eat you."
She was just crying.
angry, crying
- I came here to get you, my brothers.
And I failed.
She will say,
I'm sorry.
What if the whole journey was a waste?
Sometimes the story of people's family can end sad.
It's more difficult to live your life
than writing a story.
In your own life
maybe there is no hope,
But sometimes you need to keep...
pushing
It might be difficult, but I know that
I am the story teller
- When Liyana's story keeps going
then mine will keep going.
Sometimes it will go low,
and then you start to be brave and brave,
and brave and brave...
and be strong
I want my story to end well.
I want the story to end like...
Liyana must win!
- I want her to decide to fight.
- She will...
Just try to tear the rope.
- She pulls and pulls and pulls.
Struggling, struggling.
Snap!
Takes the rope off.
She goes to untie the cow.
Then she says, "Ssh, quiet",
because she knows that the bull,
when you let it free, it goes...
But the feet are too strong.
They go...
And Liyana say, "Ssh".
- The monster.
- Then the monster say...
Just
dreaming, sleep again.
- The key is there on the rock.
- Liyana gets to the cage and starts to open it.
Be quiet, be quiet.
Out, out, out.
- Ssh.
Be quiet, we are gonna go out.
The thieves are coming back.
But Liyana, she's clever
- And she say, "Oh".
Then she go, she goes...
untie the monster
Go faster, faster.
Monster, wakes up.
- She put the chain up.
See, I save you.
The monster hears the thieves.
The thieves coming.
Singing.
Come on, come run.
Dive!
- They die.
- And then there is one left.
One was gonna run away.
The bull
- Done.
The thieves are gone
and the monster ran away.
Yes.
Freedom!
They are happy that they are free.
Oh, my sister.
I have been missing you so much.
The other children she found,
they also don't have parents.
So they ask if they can go with Liyana.
- And Liyana says,
"Of course you can come".
It's a long, long way back.
One of the new boys says,
Oh, I remember when the thieves took me
they came with a boat
And then they go down.
Hiking down, hiking down.
They all get in the boat.
Even the cow.
And they all...
- They go and they go and they go...
- The grandmother cried with happy tears.
Tears of joy.
- Welcome home, my child.
And the grandmother says,
"I'm so proud of you".
Liyana, you are so brave and strong.
The grandmother asked Liyana,
"Where did you meet all of these children?"
And Liyana said, "Shush."
They don't have anywhere to go.
Please can they stay with us?
And the grandmother said yes.
They all go into the garden and work together.
It was not really tough
because now they were many.
They are like one family now.
- And all the children come and work
and take care of each other.
- Time to go now.
Time to go back in.
- When people remember about Liyana,
I want them to remember us.
making our own words.
- Liyana was strong.
I'm also strong.
Yeah, I'm sure.
I want to write a nice story.
my life.
I'm going to write it myself.
And I'm the one who's going
to decide how it ends.
- It's not going to be easy.
But it's an adventure.
Yes.
- And they have a dance party.
When the children are beating the drum.
- Yeah.
Yeah!
- Start singing.
Yeah, we are the winners
and we are the best.
Mm-hmm.
Can you pass it here?
- Goodnight.
- Goodnight.
Liyana is sleeping
She wakes up.
Hmm.
Hey cow, wake up.
Can you see that?
The bull says, "Mmm".
The sunrise was so beautiful.
What is the thing that changes color?
Chameleon
It was going, but it have
it's real own color
it was just
silver
and had glitters.
- Liyana climbed on top of the bull.
And then they continued with the journey.
- Go, go!
- Liyana was up the hill.
Then...
At the top of the hill.
- Ocean.
- Wow.
I've never seen this before.
And they said...
What a huge and a beautiful river.
They saw the wale going
coming out
and making a big splash again.
Liyana is looking out, thinking.
Where does the water end?
She is imagening that,
maybe there are kings and queens under there.
And they have alot of nice clothes,
and money, and good food.
The bull is wanting to drink
It must go drink.
The water tastes like salty armpits.
It's too salty.
It's too sunny and it's nice,
and she's walking there.
Maybe she forgot about the thieves.
She's just enjoying the beach.
- Okay.
Okay, I think that's enough.
Let's move on.
So let's see what you've written,
a few of our poems,
Just a few lines.
Let's hear what you've done.
All right.
Follow the tracks, the twins need you...
What are you doing? What are you doing?
Hey people
- We must listen
to one another now.
Please, please.
Thank you
Thank you.
Follow the tracks. The twins need you.
Sing her song
Danger far away. Scared to go.
Danger. Darkness. Afraid to fail.
- Danger, darkness,
afraid to fail.
Nice, nice images.
Yes, yes.
Thank you.
- Then she remembers.
My grandmother send me.
Hey bull, let's go.
And Liyana came to the desert
And...
It was hot and the wind was blowing.
Liyana felt so hungry
And the bull was thirsty.
And then the hyenas come.
- They followed Liyana from a distance.
Even the hyenas are hungry
so much hungry.
Liyana starts making fire.
Liyana was so hungry.
She's dizzy.
- Sitting there,
looking at the bull.
So hungry.
What if I just like cut a small piece from my bull?
Or the tail, because the bull is so big and
it can still walk without a tail.
She takes out her knife.
And the cow
gets cross
and cross, and cross.
Run!
- Jump!
- And they run back away.
She didn't know there was a hyena behind her
just about to
take her.
- Even though
she was so hungry...
she knew the bull was her friend.
She says sorry to the bull.
- And then they go to sleep.
- They go to sleep.
no food.
And in the morning they wake up and go.
Climb on the scale.
Stand at attention.
- 28 KGs.
Big tummy
No
Climb up on the bed.
Thanks for coming to the clinic today
I am nurse Dlamini.
Just put your hands here, my boy.
There will be no shots.
Nothing will pinch you.
Open your mouth.
Stick out your tongue
OK, breathe
Again
As for today you are well...
But continue to make an effort Mkhuleko, you see
to eat well
Because it's what is going to keep you healthy.
Alright Mkhuleko, you can go sit down now.
Here are your pills.
So, are you Thulani?
All right.
We're just going to go over a few things.
Where do you live?
At home
At home?
Thank you, Thulani.
We're going to take some blood
for your blood test.
Thulani, it won't hurt.
We're just going to quickly take some blood.
just a little drop.
It will let us know if you have HIV.
Understand?
- It is hot, no water, no food.
Liyana's walking, walking, walking...
She's tired.
She saw a shadow pass.
- She looks up.
- The vulture's are flying,
waiting for Liyana,
so Liyana's going.
- They know Liyana is getting weak.
Then she
trips
You can have a seat here.
Hello, my child.
Ok, my dear
we're going to try to
sit up here.
Hold it tight.
Now we wait for a little while.
So, how does it work if...
If the result is negative
the line will appear here on this side.
So the test is complete now.
It shows that.
the virus hasn't been found.
Thank you.
Thank you very much.
Go well, my child.
- Then...
she woke up
When she looks down there
What is that?
Many mangoes.
They are ripe and they're all ready.
And they eat, eat, eat, eat, eat...!
She climbs through the tree,
throwing mangoes for the cow.
Cow eats and eats.
- Bull?
Have you seen a bull eating mangoes?
No, the cow is eating grass.
- Liyana says...
Oh, nice shade underneath the tree.
- She says,
You know what?
I'm not going any farther.
And then she falls asleep.
She is dreaming about beautiful things.
Dreaming about her grandmother.
She hears something.
Ah, and climbs the tree.
Go faster, faster, faster!
Such a beautiful bird.
- The peacock is so nice.
And it's singing a beautiful song.
That's almost like the grandmother's voice.
She remembers her grandmother's words.
"Overcome fear".
"Hold on to hope".
Liyana knows,
it is telling her to keep going.
- So, Liyana has faced very dangerous animals
along her journey.
She has faced
tiredness and hunger.
And now, she's got to face
her greatest challenge ever.
You're gonna make something
big and dangerous.
What is Liyana scared of?
You will decide...
Like this.
You can make a big, big, big monster.
- She walks.
She walks, she walks.
To the top of the mountain.
- And they saw a huge cave.
- She sees the thieves leaving.
Now she has a chance.
Creeping, creeping,
creeping, creeping, creeping.
She doesn't know what's hiding in the cave.
It's dark inside
And it's smelly and quiet.
She remembers her grandmother saying,
"Don't be afraid"
"Be brave".
And then she sneaks in.
Her brothers see her
Liyana!
Many children
They are all in cages
She sees a chain on the ground.
What is tied there?
- The bull starts sniffing.
She says, "Ssh".
The thing comes out
It was huge!
- The fight begins.
Run!
Fight!
- Liyana picked up something and goes.
Then the cow.
And then the monster hit the bull.
And then the bull goes...
- Liyana says to the bull,
"Wake up, wake up, wake up".
Shaking the bull and the bull didn't wake up
And then Liyana
stood up and fight.
- Liyana's down.
The monster comes to eat her.
Then bam!
The thieves are back.
They shoot in the air
and the monster goes
gets back in the cave and sits
The monster hates the thieves
because they don't feed him
- And then they hold Liyana.
- They take Liyana
and the bull
The thieves say to Liyana
we'll sell all the children
and you!
And they say...
We're going to our master now
We're going to come back.
...sooner or later."
And they go.
Liyana's just struggling.
Trying to get out of the rope,
but the rope is tight.
She's trying, trying, struggling.
- Now it seems like
there's nothing she can do.
What can she do?
Sit there and wait for the thieves.
- Liyana says to the bull,
"I'm sorry that I have brought you here.
"Now they are gonna eat you."
She was just crying.
angry, crying
- I came here to get you, my brothers.
And I failed.
She will say,
I'm sorry.
What if the whole journey was a waste?
Sometimes the story of people's family can end sad.
It's more difficult to live your life
than writing a story.
In your own life
maybe there is no hope,
But sometimes you need to keep...
pushing
It might be difficult, but I know that
I am the story teller
- When Liyana's story keeps going
then mine will keep going.
Sometimes it will go low,
and then you start to be brave and brave,
and brave and brave...
and be strong
I want my story to end well.
I want the story to end like...
Liyana must win!
- I want her to decide to fight.
- She will...
Just try to tear the rope.
- She pulls and pulls and pulls.
Struggling, struggling.
Snap!
Takes the rope off.
She goes to untie the cow.
Then she says, "Ssh, quiet",
because she knows that the bull,
when you let it free, it goes...
But the feet are too strong.
They go...
And Liyana say, "Ssh".
- The monster.
- Then the monster say...
Just
dreaming, sleep again.
- The key is there on the rock.
- Liyana gets to the cage and starts to open it.
Be quiet, be quiet.
Out, out, out.
- Ssh.
Be quiet, we are gonna go out.
The thieves are coming back.
But Liyana, she's clever
- And she say, "Oh".
Then she go, she goes...
untie the monster
Go faster, faster.
Monster, wakes up.
- She put the chain up.
See, I save you.
The monster hears the thieves.
The thieves coming.
Singing.
Come on, come run.
Dive!
- They die.
- And then there is one left.
One was gonna run away.
The bull
- Done.
The thieves are gone
and the monster ran away.
Yes.
Freedom!
They are happy that they are free.
Oh, my sister.
I have been missing you so much.
The other children she found,
they also don't have parents.
So they ask if they can go with Liyana.
- And Liyana says,
"Of course you can come".
It's a long, long way back.
One of the new boys says,
Oh, I remember when the thieves took me
they came with a boat
And then they go down.
Hiking down, hiking down.
They all get in the boat.
Even the cow.
And they all...
- They go and they go and they go...
- The grandmother cried with happy tears.
Tears of joy.
- Welcome home, my child.
And the grandmother says,
"I'm so proud of you".
Liyana, you are so brave and strong.
The grandmother asked Liyana,
"Where did you meet all of these children?"
And Liyana said, "Shush."
They don't have anywhere to go.
Please can they stay with us?
And the grandmother said yes.
They all go into the garden and work together.
It was not really tough
because now they were many.
They are like one family now.
- And all the children come and work
and take care of each other.
- Time to go now.
Time to go back in.
- When people remember about Liyana,
I want them to remember us.
making our own words.
- Liyana was strong.
I'm also strong.
Yeah, I'm sure.
I want to write a nice story.
my life.
I'm going to write it myself.
And I'm the one who's going
to decide how it ends.
- It's not going to be easy.
But it's an adventure.
Yes.
- And they have a dance party.
When the children are beating the drum.
- Yeah.
Yeah!
- Start singing.
Yeah, we are the winners
and we are the best.
Mm-hmm.