End of the Spear (2005) on Netflix
Mincayani grows up among the Waorani, who answer outsiders with spears. In the Ecuadorian rainforest, missionary pilot Nate Saint plans a landing, and his son Steve learns a Waorani greeting.
- Netflix3.7/5
- IMDb6.8/105,677 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes41%
Trailer
Plot summary
Along the Curaray River in eastern Ecuador, the Waorani live apart from the outside world, and outsiders are met with spears. Mincayani grows into a warrior. As a child he saved Dayumae during a nighttime raid by a neighboring tribe, and after her younger sister died in that attack Dayumae is blamed by her family. She leaves the Waorani and goes to live with Spanish-speaking foreigners. Years pass. Nate Saint, a missionary pilot and mechanic, flies supplies to remote outposts and builds a small plane with his eight-year-old son, Steve. Nate's older sister, Rachel, has spent years with Dayumae and knows some of the Waorani language, and Steve picks up a phrase from her. Nate keeps his plan to make contact with the Waorani from Rachel, and Steve begs him to learn a greeting before he goes.
Cast
- Louie Leonardoas Mincayani
- Christina Souzaas Dayumae
- Chemo Mepaquitoas Gikita
- Ninabet Bedoyaas Gimade
- Sara Kathryn Bakkeras Rachel Saint
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about End of the Spear (2005)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- The film is based on real events of 1956, when five missionaries were speared by a group of the Waorani tribe. It is told through Steve Saint, son of one of the men killed, and Mincaye, a tribesman who took part in the attack; the two formed a lifelong bond that lasted until Mincaye's death in April 2020.
- Some Christian groups that had planned to promote the film began to question whether they should, because Chad Allen, who plays Nate Saint and his adult son Steve, is openly gay. Steve Saint, heavily involved in the production, said he had reservations himself but could not see a better actor in the role of his father.
- The film's main Waorani character, Mincayani, is not one real person but a composite the filmmakers built from the real Waorani man Mincaye and several others, a compression made to fit the cinematic format.
SPOILER
The film's climactic reconciliation between an adult Steve Saint and Mincayani did not actually happen as depicted; in real life it was more of a slow, growing love and friendship between the two men than one dramatic confrontation.
