ma-cortes Black anti-apartheid activist , a "Kaffir" (in South Africa , the term is regarded as highly racially offensive) from African National Congress ("Black Congress") , called Shack Twala (Sidney Poitier) and an Englishman named Jim Keogh (Michael Caine) on the wrong side of the law are forced to run from South African secret police . As they escape from Cape Town to Johannesburg , across 900 miles or 1,448 kilometers . They team up to getaway the clutches of a prejudiced law agent (Nicol Williamson) , a violent cop and other underlings in Apartheid Africa . Meanwhile they pursue some smuggled diamonds along the veld and are themselves relentlessly pursued by the AfriKaner Police . The film's closing credits declare: "This motion picture is fictional and any resemblance to actual persons or events in South Africa is purely coincidental". The focus of the movie is on the moving pursuit with bigotry creaming the surface , not the political uprising taking place around it , though in the course of entertaining and amusement may also make people think about racism and other thought-provoking themes . Well-done chase movie that contains thrills , emotion , interracial screwing , crossfire , profound racial issues are overseen and action as well as thriller is maintained throughout . The flick is more an action movie than a racism yarn , it is about man's humanity to man . Based on a story by Peter Driscoll and released three years after its source novel that first published in 1972 and screen-written by Rod Amateu who provides an agreeable script . The film is pretty well , but some moments results to be unpleasant , extremely violent , and invidious . Over-the-range performances from Sidney Poitier as the hand-cuffed African and Michael Caine as a British engineer who is served with some amusing deadpan sentences . Support cast is frankly good , as Prunella Gee , Saeed Jaffrey , Persis Khambatta , Rutger Hauer , Patrick Allen and shinning Nicol Williamson as a leering security cop . Stanley Myers's musical score is characteristically cool , with an attractive initial song and plenty of Indian sounds . Colorful cinematography by John Coquillon , most of the film is set in Johannesburg and Cape Town , but due to the political sensitivity of anti-apartheid , no attempt was made to film there , in fact it was shot in Kenya and Pinewood Studios, Buckinghamshire, England, UK . The motion picture was compellingly made by Ralph Nelson . He has got himself a ¨South African Soldier Blue¨ . Being the third collaboration between Nelson and Poitier and final film together, after previously collaborating on Duel at Devil (1966) and The lilies of the field (1963) . Director Ralph was expert on all kinds of genres as Western : ¨Soldier Blue¨, ¨Duel at Diablo¨; Sci-Fi : ¨Embryo¨ ; Wartime : ¨Soldier in the rain¨ , ¨Father goose¨ ; and Drama : ¨Charly , ¨A hero ain't nothing' but a Sandwich¨ , ¨lady of the house¨ and his greatest hit ¨Lilies of the field¨ who had an inferior sequel titled ¨Christmas lilies of the field¨.

Rodrigo Amaro Minor almost obscure flick with good and effective thrilling moments, "The Wilby Conspiracy" works like an updated version of "The Defiant Ones" happening in South Africa during the apartheid regime. But this time the political prisoner played by Sidney Poitier isn't chained to a white man, he's bound to a engineer (Michael Caine) who'll help you to escape to another African country to meet the leader of his resistance group. However, both of them are being followed by the police after a misunderstanding when of Poitier's release from prison. The plot, like most of its kind, involves the unlikely friendship between them and their small fights and complications. While this isn't so groundbreaking and emphatic as Stanley Kramer's classic, there's plenty of detachable qualities about its presentation of South African's apartheid, the way the authorities worked (in a very revolting way), and the political issues although simplistic introduced are quite relevant, never getting in the way of the action which is the main focus in here (the escape, the diamonds plan, etc.) with some humored sequences. It staggers a bit but overall gets off with dignity and with plenty of great moments (the ending was excellent and quite poignant for what was happening at the time, no big Hollywoodian delusions). Poitier and Caine have good chemistry and are very notable but it's Nicol Williamson (as the chief of police) and Saeed Jaffrey (as the Hindu dentist responsible for getting members of the apartheid resistance out of the country) who steal the show, and there's even a very young Rutger Hauer on a pivotal role towards the conclusion. Ralph Nelson commands a good movie combining political themes with adventure. It's a little unfortunate that at the time of its release this wasn't so well-known, could've been used as a social denounce and things could've been changed earlier in South Africa. A more politically charged piece would do more justice to the cause but this one accomplishes a good deal. 8/10

jotix100 The years in which South Africa was under the Apartheid rule are viewed in this film of 1975 directed by Ralph Nelson. We watched it recently on what appears to be a remastered DVD that has a great look, something that other films from that era have not kept.The story involves a man, Shack Twala, that has served ten years in Robben Island, where most political prisoners were sent, for being a voice that was a threat for the white ruling class. Shack Twala's lawyer, Rina Van Niekirk, makes a case for the violation of human rights being taken away from him, and surprisingly enough, the prisoner is set free. Happiness for his release is only short lived. As Rina, her boyfriend, Jim Keogh, and Twala go downtown, their car is stopped and the police apprehend the just released man again.There were forces in higher places that did not take lightly the fact that a black man would get away, because they understood that Twala would naturally try to go North to the friendly Bostwana, to get away from his tormentors. Major Horn, one of the most cruel men in the police force, follows Keogh and Twala as they move up North, a chase that will bring them to a final battle in which justice will prevail.Not having seen this film, we were interesting in watching the duo formed by Sidney Poitier and Michael Caine, two excellent actors in an action film that is never dull. Mr. Poitier has a steamy scene with the gorgeous Persis Khambatta in a closet, as he is being sought by the police. Saeed Jaffrey offers some comic relief with his dentist Mukerjee. Nicol Williamson plays Major Horn.The film, for obvious reasons, could not have been shot in South Africa, so Kenya was used for the exterior photography by John Coquillon, who gets the beauty, and barrenness of the country it tries to stand for.

bkoganbing I would really have liked to have given The Wilby Conspiracy a higher rating than I did. But unfortunately a really huge and ridiculous error was made in telling the tale.Due to political pressure brought to bear from various world human rights activists, black nationalist Sidney Poitier is freed by the apartheid South African government. On the way to celebrate, Poitier, his lawyer Prunella Gee and her boyfriend Michael Caine get into a mêlée with South African police and after assaulting a pair of them have to flee.But it turns out the government in freeing Poitier in the first place has a whole other agenda. Poitier also has something else in mind, to get a stash of diamonds hidden years ago in a robbery to aid the African National Congress. During the course of fleeing Poitier seeks the aid of an Indian dentist played by Saeed Jeffrey and his assistant Persis Khambatta. While Poitier is hidden away in a modern day priest-hole he takes Khambatta in there with him and while the South African Security are even outside within a few feet of him, Poitier and Khambatta are doing the horizontal mambo. Now granted Poitier had been in prison for 10 years and he was understandably ready to go, still I found it a bit much. The steamy sex scene definitely sold a lot movie tickets, but it was awkwardly planted into the story.Acting honors in this film go to Nicol Williamson as the South African Security Police Chief Horne. He is a chillingly evil man, resolute in defense of the apartheid society and a bigoted product of that same society. Williamson is living proof of what Martin Luther King said about racism being as toxic to the perpetrator as to the victim.The Wilby in the Wilby Conspiracy is a Nelson Mandela like figure who is in exile in neighboring Botswana. He only enters the film at the very end and in a surprising way. The Wilby Conspiracy other than that tacked on sex scene done for box office dollars is a great portrait of the last days of the apartheid society of South Africa. It should be seen for Nicol Williamson's portrayal alone.