“How could have this thing win Oscars?” is a question often asked by cinephiles when they approach certain films, especially after the passage of time has taken away novelty and hype. Too many Oscar-awarded films simply fail that test and, more often than not, look like its success can be best attributed to politics and clever marketing rather than objective quality or even popularity. One of the more telling examples, although hardly bad film per se, is Out of Africa, 1985 epic period drama directed by Sydney Pollack.
The film is based on the eponymous 1937 book of memoirs by Isak Dinesen, which was literary pseudonym of Danish writer Karen Blixen. The plot begins in 1913 Denmark when Karen (played by Meryl Streep) agrees to marry her long-time friend, Swedish aristocrat Baron Bror von Blixen (played by Klaus Maria Brandauer). It is a marriage of convenience; Karen will get title of nobility in exchange for providing Blor with her family’s financial resource. Two of them have decided to start new life in British East Africa (today’s Kenya) where they are to run dairy farm. As soon as couple comes to Africa, Karen is beset by problems – her husband buys coffee plantation instead, but soon turns out that he is not interested in running it, preferring the life of hunting safaris, wild parties, alcohol and women. Karen tries to make plantation work, but her personal life suffers because of syphilis brought by her philandering husband. She is forced to temporarily return to Denmark for treatment and when she returns, the marriage ends. In the meantime, she meets dashing British adventurer Denys Finch-Haton (played by Robert Redford) with whom she will start passionate love affair. The relationship thrives despite Denys’ refusal to settle down and marry, but Karen’s idyllic life in Africa will be brought to an end due to financial difficulties and unexpected tragedy.
Out of Africa in many ways looks like “larger than life” epics Hollywood used to make in earlier decades of 20th Century. This isn’t that surprising, since the adaptation of original book was first contemplated even during Classic Hollywood era, with Swedish superstar Great Garbo in the lead role. Version ultimately delivered by Sydney Pollack does bring glitz and glamour of past Hollywood, but American director puts authentic African locations to good use. Cinematography by celebrated British film maker David Watkin perfectly captures magnificent vistas of untamed idiyllic nature and wildlife, especially in scenes shot by air. But the most memorable element of the film is music. John Barry, author best known for his work on James Bond series, has made many memorable soundtracks, but few are as effective as romantic theme written for this film.
While the film has the right look and the right sound, this isn’t enough to compensate the film’s main flow, which stems from Kurt Luedtke’s script. The plot, which covers more than decade and half of protagonist’s life, is presented as the series of loosely connected vignettes that often fail to have much impact to the rest of the film. One example is First World War, potentially catastrophic historic development which could have bring a little bit of action and adventure, but is almost treated as an afterthought by Pollack and Luedtke. Same goes for depiction of colonial society, namely well-to-do white aristocrats which found paradise in the form of virgin land and usually don’t ask what the native black population think of their presence. Script to a degree tries to address this issue, with Karen presented as benevolent and enlightened landowner that builds a school for her Kikuyu labourers and insists that colonial authorities treat them fairly. But all that is mere sideshow in comparison with main story – romance between Karen and Denys which actually starts nearly halfway throughout the film. As a result, Out of Africa is incredibly long film that would test many viewers’ patience, especially among those viewers belonging to younger generations.
The acting is mostly solid. Meryl Streep, by that time recognised as one of the most formidable actresses in the world, tackles another role with the usual gusto and delivers strong performance, with flawless mannerisms and Danish accent. It is her perfectionism that points out another and possibly the biggest flaw of Out of Africa - miscasting of Robert Redford. American actor, known as one of the biggest stars of the time, has collaborated with Pollack before and played important part in some of that director’s greatest successes in 1970s. Here he appears to be cast simply because of his pretty face, and his refusal to abandon American accent while playing British aristocrat is too much at odds with Streep’s more methodical approach. This destroys the chemistry between the two and film suffers as result. Nevertheless, fans of John Barry’s music and old school period epics could enjoy this film, while recognising that the film’s prestigious awards might not have been well-deserved.
RATING: 6/10 (++)
Blog in Croatian https://draxblog.com Blog in English https://draxreview.wordpress.com/ Leofinance blog https://leofinance.io/@drax.leo Cent profile https://beta.cent.co/@drax Minds profile https://www.minds.com/drax_rp_nc Uptrennd profile https://www.uptrennd.com/user/MTYzNA
Unstoppable Domains: https://unstoppabledomains.com/?ref=3fc23fc42c1b417 Hiveonboard: https://hiveonboard.com?ref=drax Rising Star game: https://www.risingstargame.com?referrer=drax 1Inch: https://1inch.exchange/#/r/0x83823d8CCB74F828148258BB4457642124b1328e
BTC donations: 1EWxiMiP6iiG9rger3NuUSd6HByaxQWafG ETH donations: 0xB305F144323b99e6f8b1d66f5D7DE78B498C32A7
Movie URL: https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/606-out-of-africa Critic: AA
[source](https://classiq.me/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/out-of-africa-style-4-e1342971830560.png)
