"Out Of Africa"

Title: "Out Of Africa"

Director: Sydney Pollack
Producers: S. Pollack and K. Jorgensen
Editing: F. Steinkamp, W. Steinkamp, P. Herring, and S. Kahn
Composer: John Barry
Starring:
- Robert Redford as Denys Finch Hatton
- Meryl Streep as Karen Blixen
- Klaus Maria Brandauer as Bror Blixen/Hans Blixen
- Michael Kitchen as Berkeley Cole
- Shane Rimmer as Belknap
- Malick Bowens as Farah
- Joseph Thiaka as Kamante
- Stephen Kinyanjui as Chief Kinanjui
- Michael Gough as Baron Delamere

Plot and Critical Review: The ploy synopsis provided by Wikipedia was terribly weak and the one I found on IMDB wasn't much better (it didn't even have character names in it!), but I dressed it up and submit it for your consideration.

A prominently wealthy Danish lady by the name of Karen (pronounced car-in) moves to an English colony in Africa and buys 1000 acres of land. Her beau dies and to avoid loneliness she proposes marriage to his kind but rascally brother, Bror, whom she got along with as a friend. He consents to marriage, but in no small part because of Karen’s wealthy family. They agree to start a cattle farm and she goes back to Denmark to get funding from her family. When she returns she is distraught to find her husband has decided that they will grow coffee instead, despite the fact that no one had ever attempted to grow it at such a high altitude. Karen decides that 500 acres should be planted.

The First World War breaks out soon thereafter and most of the men go south and serve on the front lines. Even though it is terribly dangerous and socially unforgivable, Karen leads a long and dangerous supply run to Bror and the men on the front lines. Not only does she learn much about surviving in the wild, she (begrudgingly) gains the respect of the soldiers who watched her come to their aid.

After the fighting has ended her husband continues to live more independently than she would like. Bror transmits syphilis to her, although he suffers no noticeable effects from the disease. He is apologetic that he gave it to her, but he’s shows no remorse for being unfaithful or fiercely independent. She returns to Denmark for treatment, is cured, and returns to the farm 3 years later. Bror moves out of their home after soliciting a sum of money from her. They divorce later in the film.

The coffee crops start coming in but turning a profit proves difficult. Karen enlists the services of a local tribe to work her farm. Over time she employs the majority of the tribe and allows them to live on the 500 uncultivated acres of her property. She builds a school and hires a teacher to educate the children, although this is mostly met with disapproval from those who would rather see the natives remain uneducated and easy to control and manipulate.

Karen turns her attention to Denys, a freelance hunter and guide for safari parties. They met much earlier in the film, but only now does she have the opportunity to express her feelings for him. Denys is honest and loyal but very independent as he lives quite adventurously in the wilderness. Karen tries to convince Denys to settle down and stay with her, but he is obviously at odds with “settling” with or being “owned” by any person.

Meanwhile Karen’s farm is just barely getting by and she is forced to mortgage it with a local backer. The fields yield a bumper crop but all of her storehouses and barns catch fire. Karen loses everything and goes bankrupt. Having no insurance to fall back on she is forced to sell her home, all of her possessions, and return to Denmark. Just as she loses the farm, she loses Denys when he is killed in a plane crash. With her farm and lover gone, her life in Africa is over and she leaves, vowing never to return.

"Out Of Africa" has been in my personal list of Top 10 Films since the very first time I saw it. I was immediately captivated by the film's truly epic scope and the striking contrast between the vastness of the African plains and the drama unfolding in Karen's life. Good epics manage to do that, present dramatically genuine story lines in the face of epic landscapes and events. "Out Of Africa" worked hard to earn it's glory as 1985 was a year full of action/adventure ("Rocky IV" and "Rambo: First Blood Part II") and the fantastic ("Back To The Future" and "Cocoon"). But what those other film had in spades (technology, popularity, and the power of the sequel) they lacked in real drama. Compared to "Out Of Africa", that is, which took home 7 Oscars including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Music Score. Few films receive that many Oscars in the first place, much less come as close to earning the coveted Big Three (Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay).

My Rating: 9/10

Content to Caution:
V-1.5 - A scuffle at a party, and some wildlife-related action here and there.
L-1 - No comment.
DU-2 - Most adult characters drink and/or smoke, especially in social settings.
RT-2 - The Kikuyu appear to be serving as slaves and are occasionally slandered.
H/S-0 - No comment.
CH- 1.5 - No comment.
S/N-2 - Sex between characters is suggested several times. Some kissing. A very brief scene showing Denys and Karen making love includes some nudity.

The "Reel Revelation": "Quite A Grip You've Got There!"

"Can I have a hug?" I don't know of many people who would say "no" to such a request, but I can think of many instances in which fulfilling that wish led to moments of unexpected emotional expression. You stretch out your arms for a simple embrace and suddenly you feel as if your life is being squeezed out of you! They asked for a hug, didn't they? You realize you've gone way beyond their simple request and that they're holding onto you for a deeper reason. Maybe you've done the same; reached out to someone and held on tight for a reason that could never be expressed through words. Be it a reaction to dazzling joy or crushing grief, that's what we do...hold on.

There's another kind of "holding", however, that is not so sentimental, and we see it displayed over and over again in "Out Of Africa" through Karen's constant attempt to control her environment. It begins when she proposes marriage to Bror. There is a very brief period of time in which their marriage seems to have the chance to thrive, but as soon as he expresses his independence she loses her motivation to stick with the relationship. Her frustration is doubled when Bror gives her syphilis and she realizes she has almost no control over him whatsoever. She ejects him from her life at once and her heart turns (or she turned her heart) toward Denys.

Denys provides an actual opportunity for true love and genuine romantic relationship. Once again we observe a time in which their relationship seems to be blossoming, but Karen is obviously irritated that Denys spends so much time away from home. Eventually, unable to maintain control, she sends Denys away as well. Karen's will finally gives out when the plantation and bumper crop are destroyed. She accepts defeat and returns to Denmark.

Have you ever held onto something so tightly that you wouldn't let it go, even when you knew it was dead in your hands? Are we so desperate to maintain control that we refuse to surrender until, just like Karen, our lives lie in smoldering ruins at our feet?

I recently heard a story about a woman in her early 50s who, having suffered from severe brain and lung cancer, was very near to death. Her family gathered around the deathbed to be with her when she passed. As soon as she exhaled her last breath her oldest daughter leapt onto the bed and began administering CPR. She could not revive her mother. The nurses were eventually able to pull the daughter off, but not after some effort.

Jesus calls us to live with open hands and open hearts. Do I dare suggest that what the daughter did for her mother was wrong? Absolutely not, for she reached out in love and for the sake of life itself! But we do have a way of convincing ourselves that "holding on" can be a loving act even when we're clearly trying to get our own way. Most of the time we realize that we are, but selfishness and the desire to maintain control smother the Spirit's conviction. We squeeze tighter and tighter. Jesus summons us to let go of the things we think are important and to pick up and carry something quite different from the things we seek to control:

"Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple." (Luke 14:27)

We might be brave enough to say, "Yes, Lord, I carry my cross everyday!", but do we really sense the weight of the wood, or do our knees buckle from the weight of burdens we've piled on? After all, if you're going to control something, you've pretty much got to take it with you wherever you go... Is there any space left for a cross on a pair of shoulders that are already so heavily burdened? If Jesus called out to you right now and summoned you to go somewhere, could you leave everything and follow Him? Not in a couple days or in a week, but right now?

- Do not forget the story of the rich young ruler who was unwilling to give up his treasures and follow after Jesus. (Mark 10:17-31)

- Do not forget Lot's wife who, by simply looking back to Sodom and Gomorrah (holding onto the past), was turned into a pillar of salt. (Genesis 19:26)

- Do not forget the slave in the Parable of Talents who, out of fear, buried the money that was given to him. He thought his actions were sensible, but his master called him a "wicked, lazy slave". (Mark 10:14-30)

May our hearts and hands be open to God at all times, for the purposes and tasks He will set them to will be far greater than anything we might try to hold or control. May we open our hands and bare our shoulders to hold the Cross, seeking to serve the One who died upon it, for He is far greater than anything we might try to hold or control.

See you Monday - E.T.