Is Out Of Africa based on a true story?
by A Maria
Updated Mar 08, 2023
Out Of Africa
Out of Africa, a 1985 epic romantic drama movie, was directed and produced by Sydney Pollack and featured Meryl Streep and Robert Redford as its main stars. The movie was based on Isak Dinesen's 1937 autobiographical book "Out of Africa" (which was written under the pseudonym of Danish author Karen Blixen) with additional content from her 1960 book "Shadows on the Grass" and other sources. The screenplay was written by Kurt Luedtke, and the filming took place in 1984. The film's cast included Klaus Maria Brandauer as Baron Bror Blixen, Michael Kitchen as Berkeley Cole, Malick Bowens as Farah, Stephen Kinyanjui as the Chief, Michael Gough as Lord Delamere, Suzanna Hamilton as Felicity, and the model and actress Iman as Mariammo. The critics gave the movie positive reviews, and it was a commercial success, earning seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for Pollack.
Is Out Of Africa based on a true story?
Certainly! "Out of Africa" is a true story, based primarily on Isak Dinesen's 1937 autobiographical book of the same name. The movie also incorporates elements from her other works, such as "Shadows on the Grass," as well as secondary sources like Judith Thurman's "Isak Dinesen: The Life of a Story Teller" and Errol Trzebinski's "Silence Will Speak." While "Out of Africa" takes inspiration from Karen's book, it is not an entirely faithful adaptation. Certain parts of her story, such as a locust swarm incident, were not included in the film, and much of her writing about the German Army was omitted. Additionally, the size of Karen's property in the movie is smaller than in real life.
Where was out of Africa filmed?
"Out of Africa" is a 1985 film that depicts events from the life of Karen Blixen-Finecke, who wrote under the pen name Isak Dinesen. The movie stars Meryl Streep and Robert Redford and is known for its stunning cinematography. It won seven Academy Awards, including the Best Picture award. The movie is set between the years of 1913 and 1931 and begins in Denmark. Karen proposes a marriage of convenience to her friend and cousin, Baron Bror Blixen-Finecke, and they decide to run a dairy farm in Africa. They travel to British East Africa, where they subsequently get married. Upon arrival, Bror decides to operate a coffee farm, leaving Karen to manage the venture largely on her own. As she explores the area, she has a close encounter with a lioness, but she is saved by a big-game hunter named Denys Finch Hatton, played by Redford. Karen attends to the medical needs of the Kikuyu people who live in the area. Most of the film was shot on location in Kenya, near the Ngong Hills outside Nairobi. The screenplay, written by Karl Luedtke, drew on more recent biographies of Dinesen and Finch Hatton, as well as on Dinesen's own writings. Prior to Pollack's successful adaptation, Orson Welles, David Lean, and Nicolas Roeg had considered turning Dinesen's book, "Out of Africa" (1937), into a film.
Out Of Africa Ending explained
Out of Africa narrates the story of the narrator's former farm situated in what is now Kenya, at the foot of the Ngong hills outside Nairobi. The farm grows coffee and occupies only a part of its six thousand acres while the rest is forest and land for the native people to reside on. Most of the natives on the farm belong to the Kikuyu tribe and work on the farm in exchange for living there. The narrator is a Danish woman who actively involves herself with the natives, running an evening school for both children and adults and providing medical care to anyone in need.
The story is not described in chronological order, and the narrator recalls several incidents on the farm. The visitors to her farm include many Europeans, natives, a Dane named Knudsen, and an Indian high priest. Her closest friends, Berkeley Cole, and Denys Finch-Hatton spend a considerable amount of time on the farm. Finch-Hatton and the narrator frequently hunt together and even shot two lions on separate occasions. The narrator shapes a paradise-like landscape in Africa, living in unity with the natives and animals.
However, the story ends on a tragic note when the coffee farm goes bankrupt, and the narrator sells it to a foreign firm that plans to develop it for residential purposes. Soon after, Denys Finch-Hatton dies in a plane crash, and the narrator has him buried in the Ngong Hills. She works to relocate the natives who live on her farm to a portion of the Kikuyu Reserve before leaving Africa herself after bidding farewell to her friends and selling her furniture and animals.
About Out Of Africa
SPECIFICATIONS
DETAILS
Directed by
Sydney Pollack
Screenplay by
Kurt Luedtke
Based on
Out of Africa
by Isak Dinesen
Isak Dinesen: The Life of a Story Teller
by Judith Thurman
Silence Will Speak
by Errol Trzebinski
Produced by
Sydney Pollack
Kim Jorgensen
Starring
Robert Redford
Meryl Streep
Klaus Maria Brandauer
Cinematography
David Watkin
Edited by
Fredric Steinkamp
William Steinkamp
Pembroke Herring
Sheldon Kahn
Music by
John Barry
Production company
Mirage Enterprises
Distributed by
Universal Pictures
Release date
December 18, 1985
Country
United States
Languages
English
Swahili
Is out of Africa based on a true story - FAQs
Out of Africa is a romantic drama movie based on the life of Danish author Karen Blixen, who wrote under the name Isak Dinesen. The movie follows her experiences as a coffee farmer in Kenya in the early 20th century, her relationships with various men, including a big-game hunter, and her struggles with the challenges of colonial life and the changing political landscape.
The movie was directed and produced by Sydney Pollack, an American filmmaker and actor who also directed other acclaimed movies such as Tootsie, The Firm, and The Interpreter.
The movie's main stars were Meryl Streep and Robert Redford. Streep played Karen Blixen, while Redford played Denys Finch Hatton, a charismatic adventurer and love interest of Blixen. Other notable cast members included Klaus Maria Brandauer, Michael Kitchen, Malick Bowens, and Iman.
Yes, Out of Africa was based on Isak Dinesen's 1937 autobiographical book of the same name, which chronicled her life in Kenya. The movie also drew from her 1960 book "Shadows on the Grass" and other sources.
Yes, Out of Africa was a critical and commercial success and won seven Academy Awards in 1986, including Best Picture, Best Director for Pollack, and Best Actress for Streep. It also won several Golden Globe Awards, BAFTA Awards, and other honors.