Dir. Sydney Pollack (1985)
Rated PG Out of Africa follows a rich, aristocratic woman named Karen Blixen (Meryl Streep) as she moves to Africa to be a dairy farmer. She plans to join her husband, Bror, for whom she doesn't actually have feelings for. They only married because Bror wanted Karen's family's money, and Karen hated the thought of being single. While there, Karen finds out that Bror went behind her back to set up a coffee farm instead of dairy. He then leaves to go on hunting expeditions and farms without her, basically leaving her in the dust. She then befriends a hunter, Denys (Robert Redford) a wild and carefree spirit. They spend everyday together, him taking her on hunting trips, safaris, and plane rides. She eventually develops feelings for him and they both fall in love. They have a fast and adventurous romance, that eventually ends in heartbreak. My mom forced me to watch this movie, because she claims it is one of the best she has ever seen. My dad also LOVES this movie, and when I told them both I thought it was just okay, they went on long rants for why it is a cinematic masterpiece and that I need to watch it again to really get it. I don't think that's necessary, so I won't be doing that. I still think that this movie was just OKAY. It's certainly not bad, but it didn't blow me away. I thought it was too long, for starters. This movie reminds me of Gone with the Wind in some aspects. The characters Scarlet and Karen are strikingly similar in my opinion. They are both very strong women, but they get carried away with their feelings for particular men, and that kind of annoyed me. Though this movie was long, the relationship with Denys and Karen went way too fast. Maybe that was the point of their relationship, because it was all about living in the moment for them, but it seemed to me like the actual development of the relationship was weak and everything just happened too quickly. It was fun while it lasted, but the entire beginning of the movie I could see it coming so I was just waiting for them to end up together. When it ended, and SPOILER ALERT, when Denys suddenly dies, I was just.. frustrated. This entire movie, that is way too long, builds up to their relationship and then it all of a sudden ends because Denys got in a plane crash. My parent's argument: Denys is a wild, carefree man who explicitly stated that he could never be held down in a relationship. He is in love with the world and wants to see it all, and for him to be such a wild and reckless man, there was no other way for him to die than suddenly and in a plane crash. I admittedly get that. I was still irked at the way the movie handled their relationship, I guess. I WILL say that the scenery and music in this is quite nice. For me, it was one of the only forgiving parts and what I liked the most. I see why this movie was nominated for a lot and so well received when it came out solely because the scenery.soundtrack is amazing (in my opinion). It was also really cool to see Meryl Streep act in one of her earlier movies, because she is one of my favorite actresses. She was great, but I do think sh has gotten even more amazing with time. Her versatility in roles that she is able to play blows me away. Anyways. I understand why this movie was seen as the best thing since sliced bread when it came out. Some people may think its the love story that withstands time, but I don't agree. It was good for its time and I'm not saying it's bad! I just don't get all the praise that my parents gave it. I do think that it's a movie that you should watch because it is a classic and deserving of a watch and people have so many different takes on it. You might love it.
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AuthorCasey Land Archives
January 2018
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