Parents' Guide to

Out of Africa

By S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 13+

Enthralling epic about 1900s Africa tackles mature subjects.

Movie PG 1986 160 minutes
Out of Africa Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

age 13+

Based on 1 parent review

age 13+

tweens depends on maturity

love it its a good family movie to sit and watch together

This title has:

Great role models

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (1):
Kids say (6):

OUT OF AFRICA is Meryl Streep at her iconic best, armed with a flawless accent and a deep understanding of her character. Her Karen Blixen follows a formidable, and believable, arc, one accompanied by such impressive companions as Redford, so comfortable in his gallant and handsome skin here, and Brandauer. The story is sprawling and compelling and so is Karen's metamorphosis: how she grows as a person; how she can't make an uninterested husband love her; how she falls for a fiercely independent hunter who appreciates her but doesn't want to be caged. (There's one scene where he lovingly washes her hair and quotes poetry -- who can resist?)

John Barry's compositions for the soundtrack heighten the film's transporting quality; it places you in an altogether different, and romantic, time and place. Under the gentle hands of director Sydney Pollack, the landscape becomes a character, too. It enthralls the audience, the same way it once enthralled the baroness herself. As does the movie, which reaped handfuls of Academy Awards.

Movie Details

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