Rating: 
Summary: It's not National Geographic
Review: Please don't waste your time with this movie. It has little story, minimal scenery and average directing. I watched the final third of the movie on fast-fwd, it was that bad. For heavens sake, don't "buy it" if you do decide to give it a go.
Rating: 
Summary: Good cinematography is not enough
Review: Starring Kim Bassinger and Vincent Perez, this film is based on the true story of Kuki Gallmann, a divorced Italian socialite with a young son who marries a man who has a ranch in Kenya. She loves it, in spite of the storms and the heat and the threat from wild animals and poisonous snakes. Eventually tragedy strikes.While the cinematography is outstanding, unfortunately the script is weak and confusing. There's a scene where the husband is injured and then saved, but it took up no more than one minute of the film. It was so confusing that I rewound the VCR and played it again and still didn't know exactly what it was about. When I heard that Ms. Bassinger was paid $5 million for this movie I was shocked. She might be lovely to look at, but this role, which demanded a wide range of emotions, was way over her head. The child who played the young son at 7, Liam Aiken, was wonderful though as well as the young man who played the son at 17, Garret Strommen. Cast as Ms. Bassinger's mother was Eva Marie Saint, who did a good job in the role. Now 76 years old, I can't help but look behind her wrinkled face and see the young woman playing opposite Marlon Brandon in "On the Waterfront" almost 50 years ago. Perhaps the book is better, but the script never developed several themes it introduced. The story line, however, did keep me interested enough to keep me awake. And the ultimate tragedy was so moving that I found myself weeping. I can't recommend this video. Just not enough going for it.
Rating:
Summary: Depressing with no consistent storyline
Review: There's really no way that they could make this movie any better. Seeing as it's based on a true story, I don't think there's any fixing it. It tries to paint a picture of Kim Basinger's character losing everything but still having a respect for Africa, and tries to put this woman's luxurious turned hard life into a very dramatic light, but ultimately fails. And there's not and real storyline or climax in the whole film, it's more like you're watching somebody's life, and nearly only the bad parts. It would have been better as a documentary, I think, rather than a major motion picture. You're left feeling depressed, and sad that you took the time to watch it. Skip it.
Rating:
Summary: Depressing with no consistent storyline
Review: There's really no way that they could make this movie any better. Seeing as it's based on a true story, I don't think there's any fixing it. It tries to paint a picture of Kim Basinger's character losing everything but still having a respect for Africa, and tries to put this woman's luxurious turned hard life into a very dramatic light, but ultimately fails. And there's not and real storyline or climax in the whole film, it's more like you're watching somebody's life, and nearly only the bad parts. It would have been better as a documentary, I think, rather than a major motion picture. You're left feeling depressed, and sad that you took the time to watch it. Skip it.
Rating: 
Summary: Magnificent scenery emphasized at the expense of the story
Review: This film was a fluff piece that succeeded better as a showcase for Kim Bassinger and Africa's natural beauty than it did at telling this true story. The first hour of the film was a succession of Kodak moments depicting the romantic splendor of Africa and how idyllic it would be to live there. Although they showed the occasional storm and threatening wild animal, every effort was made to emphasize the positives. They glossed over little things like the oppressive heat (Kenya straddles the equator but no one in the film ever broke a sweat), insects (not a mosquito in sight), and the fact that the rainy season is three months long and it often rains nonstop for weeks. The first hour seemed more like an advertisement by the Kenyan ministry of tourism than a feature film. It wasn't until the second hour that the story really centered on the characters. Filming Africa is a cinematographer's dream. Unfortunately, Director Hugh Hudson seems to have been so enamored with creating beautiful photography (and it was truly magnificent) that he rushed through the dramatic elements to get to the next helicopter shot of wild animals loping across the plains. Many of the important dramatic scenes were not allowed to fully develop, giving a snippet and then cutting away to a completely unrelated scene. This took much of the impact out of the film. One example is the egg hanging over the bed. A big point was made over the fact that Paolo had put something in the egg. Yet, we never learn what it is. Why tease us with this tidbit if he is not going to follow through? The film had strong conservationist undertones, but they were tastefully done and not overly preachy. The point was made that poaching to hunt elephants for ivory is illegal and unconscionable, but it was presented in a way that wasn't strident and smug. The scenes of dead elephants made the statement in a poignant way, much better than any dialogue could have. Kim Basinger was excellent as Kuki. She went with a more natural look which was very flattering. The understated makeup used in the film revealed that even at 47, she is still one of the most beautiful women on the planet. However, after a three-year hiatus since L.A. Confidential, she delivered her second consecutive acting triumph, proving that she is more than just a pretty face. Her acting was far more genuine and mature than any role I had seen her play before. After having read an interview she gave about the film, it is clear that Basinger is a strong conservationist and naturalist and she identified strongly with her role, which imbued her performance with great conviction and believability. This film was good, but it could have been much better. I rated it a 7/10. The locations and photography were marvelous, but the story's power was frayed by inattention to basic filmmaking tenets. If Hudson had spent more time developing the characters and creating continuity for the story, it would have been an exceptional film.
Rating:
Summary: AN INSIPID CINEMATIC EXPERIENCE...
Review: This is a somewht insipid film, based upon a true story. It tells the tale of Kuki Gallman, a somewhat immature woman in Italy who marrys a man, Paolo, of whom she knows little. She and he, together with her young son, move to Africa, where they buy a large, rundown ranch in Kenya. Having moved there to make a new life, she finds that her new husband has wanderlust in his soul, as well as a lust for danger and excitement, and is not much of a homebody. She is pretty much left to run the ranch and the household herself, while worrying whether her husband will return home safely from his hunting excursions with his friends. As they adjust to their new life, however, they form a deep love for Africa. Over the years, a series of mishaps and personal tragedies befall her, none of which make her lose her abiding love for Africa, where she chooses to remain, despite entreaties from her mother to return home to Italy. The cinematography is wonderful. What is wrong with the film is that it is shallow and never fully engages the viewer. As a result, the viewer never really seems to care about the characters, despite the fact that Kim Basinger and Vincent Perez do all they can with the pallid script. Nothing is ever explored or fleshed out. The director touches on a number of themes, but all are passed over as if deemed unimportant. Consequently, the movie just aimlessly moves along, a pleasant, though unimportant, cinematic sojourn.
Rating: 
Summary: Visually Beautiful, Otherwise Without Purpose
Review: This is not the kind of film one purchases. This is not even the kind of film one rents. Perhaps the only way to see this is if one happens to catch it on some movie channel one night without anything better to watch. This film is not terrible, for there are many other films far worse than this. This film is simply pointless. Where's the plot? What's the storyline? If one were to sum up the story, it would go like this: Car accident. Sudden move to Africa. Lots of pretty scenes of Africa. Couple performing aimless activities around their hut. Bad things happen to man. Tragedy. Tragedy. Characters start to get hurt or die off when the writer has nothing better to write. The only saving grace is the performance by Kim Basinger and the other actors. The actors obviously tried to save this film, but alas, it was not possible. Strong performances cannot make up for no plot. It's like watching an ant crawl around on the wall. One tries to figure out where it's going until after a while he starts to realise it's going no where.
Rating:
Summary: Great Cinematography, Little Plot
Review: This movie was a true story. It is the story of an Italian woman, played by Kim Bassinger, who with her husband, buys a large ranch in Kenya. Unfortunanately, not everyones life is interesting enough to make a movie about it. I wish director, Hugh Hudson, would have based it on a true story that way he could have added some exciting storyline and made this film a little more interesting. Just when the movie looks like it might start getting interesting with an exciting event such a storm, the husband getting gored by a wild animal, or a possible conflict with local natives whoare poaching animals for ivory, the event ends and the story goes onto something totally unrelated. Another big complaint that I had with the movie was that a big point was made over the fact that thehusband had put something in an egg that hung over the couples bed... The cinematography was outstanding but the plot was to weak to make me want to purchase this film.
Rating:
Summary: Great Cinematography, Little Plot
Review: This movie was a true story. It is the story of an Italian woman, played by Kim Bassinger, who with her husband, buys a large ranch in Kenya. Unfortunanately, not everyones life is interesting enough to make a movie about it. I wish director, Hugh Hudson, would have based it on a true story that way he could have added some exciting storyline and made this film a little more interesting. Just when the movie looks like it might start getting interesting with an exciting event such a storm, the husband getting gored by a wild animal, or a possible conflict with local natives whoare poaching animals for ivory, the event ends and the story goes onto something totally unrelated. Another big complaint that I had with the movie was that a big point was made over the fact that thehusband had put something in an egg that hung over the couples bed... The cinematography was outstanding but the plot was to weak to make me want to purchase this film.
Rating:
Summary: I dreamed of a better movie
Review: Two things drew me to this movie: the lush photography and actor Vincent Perez, a favorite of mine; neither rescued the film from 2 hours of pleasant dullness however. This true tale about conservationist Kuki Gallman treads dangerously into real-life epic territory. That is the filmmakers have the enormous responsibility of creating an engaging story without betraying the subject. The movie never manages to do either, treading along in stunted, episodic fashion and never revealing an intimate portrait of Gallman. Instead of a true character, we only see the milestones of her life. After a car accident causes Kuki (Kim Basinger) to reevaluate her life, she decides to move to Kenya with her son (Liam Aiken) and new husband (Perez). There, they test the limits of love and endurance, encountering every natural and human hostility that would greet an upper class European family. In spite of her isolation and the tragedies that befall her, Kuki perseveres and in time becomes part of the African landscape she loves. The movie is not horrible by any means. Few locations have the naked beauty of Africa, and its nature is seeped with such rawness that one marvels at Kuki's strength of survival. Nevertheless, other films have done much more with much less. As Kuki and Paolo constantly remark of Africa, this movie has a different rhythm, more of the stop and go variety. It suffers from a lack of plot and its dependence on disjointed vignettes that, although revealing, never cohere. I kept searching for a theme or two to materialize - a clash between Kuki and her adventurous husband, her battle to tame life, the land, and herself, etc. - and while the filmmakers likely wanted to avoid pigeonholing her life, we are left with even less of a sense of character. Despite a weak script, superb acting bolstered the film. Kim Basinger impressed me once again. She commands this role with ferocity, especially with scenes between Kuki and her son. Vincent Perez, who has built a solid body of work across the ocean ("Indochine," "Cyrano de Bergerac"), has yet to find a commercial or critical hit in America. It's too bad because he possesses a unique intensity, not unlike that of Paolo. Charming Liam Aiken is a natural in his role, and Eva Marie Saint embodies every bit the mannerisms of a European elite who otherwise would not set foot in Africa but still loves her daughter for doing so. This could have been a better DVD. Although there are some good features, including an HBO special, trailers, and score only track, I was disappointed with the lack of information on Kuki Gallman and her conservation efforts. Also, a feature on Kenya would have been nice.
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