Among the films of various countries whose themes involve this magical land of Africa, Out of Africa, which was filmed by American director sydney pollack in 1985, is undoubtedly the most artistic and rich in connotation. It won seven awards, including best film, best director, best adapted screenplay, best photography and best original music. The soundtrack of the film was written by British composer john barry.
The whole film begins with the memory of female writer Karin Blixen. In 1914, Karin and Swedish Baron broll Blixen left their native Denmark and came to Kenya, a former British colony in eastern Africa. After they got married, they ran a big coffee plantation together. Karin, who had just arrived in Africa, once met a lion without a gun. Thanks to Dennis, an Englishman of noble birth, she was saved. Karin is deeply in love with Dennis. Because of Dennis's independent and uninhibited personality, although they are soul mates, their relationship is intermittent. In 193, a fire destroyed Karin's coffee plantation. Dennis was also killed in a plane crash soon. Dennis once gave her two gifts: a pen and a flight. It was he who took her to the sky by plane. Soaring in the blue sky, she felt that she was overlooking the beautiful and rich African land "through God's eyes". With the death of Dennis, everything passed away, and with the two most cherished gifts in her heart, Karin left the continent she loved with loss and melancholy. She will never forget that Dennis took his phonograph with him when he was hunting. He took "three rifles, a month's dry food, and Mozart …".
The theme of the soundtrack appearing at the beginning of the film was created by the composer according to the motive of the theme of the second movement of Mozart's clarinet concerto, a classical piece that we heard at the beginning of the film and then appeared again and again. This is the favorite music work of the hero Dennis. Therefore, this melody we heard has an elegant and noble quality, and at the same time it has the most distinctive and charming creative characteristics of composer john barry. It has a steady rhythm, broad harmony, beautiful melody and smooth stretching, and is one of the most popular screen melodies in john barry. On the vast and magnificent Yuan Ye which is reproduced by the camera well and faithfully, it seems that we can feel the rhythm of the earth, the breath of everything and the fragrance of the earth through music.
Mozart's works appear in the film Out of Africa in the form of "picture active sound". Since Dennis gave Karin a phonograph, we have been hearing several pieces of Mozart's instrumental music. Among them, Mozart's clarinet concerto in A major is the most frequently used one and actively participates in the story narration. This work Mozart was written in the last years of his life-1791, in which the second movement is obviously chamber music. It is worth mentioning that this movement has been used in world film works many times. The theme of clarinet solo is simple, quiet and meaningful. In the second half of the film, it always appears in the camera with the hero Dennis. Dennis has always been unwilling to be bound by emotion and family, and refused Karin's wish to live together. He is used to being alone and destined to wander all his life. In the scene where Karin is listening to the music played by the phonograph and waiting for her sweetheart to come again, the quiet melody of solo clarinet seems to deepen her loneliness and disappointment.
Karin, the heroine of Out of Africa, is played by Meryl Streep, recognized as the chief professional actress in the United States. Her husband broll is played by the famous Austrian actor Klaus Maria Brandauer. The Austrian actor China should be familiar to the audience. About ten years ago, in the series "john cleese Dover" which was broadcast by Beijing TV station and produced by EMI, Christophe was played by Brandauer.
Dennis, the hero of Out of Africa, is played by one of the most attractive screen idols-robert redford. The blond Dennis he played was aristocratic. He is bold and unrestrained, traveling everywhere, being exclusive and charming. It was he who flew a yellow plane from the sky and took his girlfriend to the blue sky, giving her a chance to overlook this magical and rich continent they love through God's eyes. On the screen, as the plane climbs and the scenery changes, the texture of music is constantly full and the timbre is constantly changing. When the emotions in the music accumulated to saturation, as the camera switched to a close-up view of the plane flying over a large white bird flock, the theme of the opening music plummeted, vividly expressing the surging passion in Karin's heart. This is the most memorable set of pictures in the film. In the air, Karin, deeply moved, reached out her hand to the back of the cockpit.
Out of Africa is a veritable blockbuster with high taste and almost no commercial trace. With an implicit nostalgia, it shows people's reflection and introspection in the face of the abnormal development of modern civilization and its invasion of other national cultures in the world at the beginning of this century. Through the storyline, a large number of poetic pictures and the protagonist's confession, the film reflects the longing of European immigrants living in colonies, represented by Karin, for returning to nature and their care for the ancient folk customs of indigenous peoples. In terms of material selection, film music also shows respect for African folk music and the comprehensiveness and richness of the overall idea of creation.