Each time I watch the Academy Award-winning romantic drama Out of Africa, I get swept up in the sheer beauty of it all - the scenery, the sets, the music and the love story. It’s hard to believe it was filmed in 1985 because all these years later, it feels timeless. The film, directed and produced by Sydney Pollack, stars Meryl Streep as Karen Blixen and Robert Redford as Denys Finch Hatton. It is adapted from the autobiography of Isak Dinesen, also known as Karen Blixen.
The plot follows Karen and Baron Bror Blixen moving to British East Africa in 1913. As she faces the difficulties of their failing coffee farm and marriage, the protagonist's growing relationship with the mysterious big-game hunter Denys Finch Hatton is explored. The film received generally positive reviews from critics.
Out of Africa won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, and Best Cinematography.
Kenyan Landscapes: The Heart of the Film
Several stunning locales in England and Kenya were filming locations for Out of Africa. The Karen and Lang'ata areas, which are close to the actual Ngong Hills west of Nairobi, were the primary locations for filming. Much of it was filmed in the Karen / Lang'ata area near the actual Ngong Hills outside Nairobi.
The Ngong Dairy in Karen (named after Blixen), with areas of lush farmland and a magnificent view of the Ngong Hills, provided a fitting location for a replica of Blixen’s home. An existing farmhouse on the property was renovated to duplicate the original. Thick ivy was stripped from its walls, and a cookhouse and paved veranda the full length of the house were added. They also planted coffee in various stages of growth around the house so they could film the progression of the crop through the story.
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Director Sidney Pollack says Production Designer Stephen Grimes “saw past all the crumbling stones of the house and the dried grass and the abandoned place and turned it into a really lovely house that was very close in spirit to the one she lived in with the same view of the Ngong hills in back.”
The house they used in the film was once owned by the widow of Jomo Kenyatta, the first Prime Minister and President of Kenya. The film crew added onto the house in order to make it resemble Blixen’s. Her actual home was still standing, but it was being used as a government health training facility and wasn’t available.
Essential roles were played by members of the Kikuyu tribe, particularly by the grandson of Chief Kinyanjui. These were known as Shambas, Swahili for a patch of cultivated land, and were quickly inhabited by local people, which gave them a lived-in look by the time filming got underway.
Mbogani, which is Karen Blixen's childhood home turned dairy farm, was an essential site for filming Out of Africa. Her original home, Mbagathi, has been transformed into the Karen Blixen Museum. The stone farmhouse was built in 1912 by Swedish engineer Åke Sjögren. Karen and Baron Bror von Blixen bought it in 1917. Although they separated in 1921, she continued living there until 1931.
The museum is open from 9:30 am - 6:00 pm, including weekends and public holidays, and offers continuous tours. You’ll see some of Karen’s original furniture and belongings as well as some props from the film.
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A Kikuyu village consisting of circular cottages made of mud bricks and thatched with reeds was also built within the grounds, for the most part by a group of women.
Constructed on open property in Langata, the Scott house authentically represented Nairobi in the 1910s and was used frequently for filming. A portion of an abandoned railroad bed located about 60 miles outside of Nairobi is used as the backdrop for the film's train scenes.
The scenes depicting the Government House were shot at Nairobi School with the administration block providing a close replica of British colonial governors' residences.
The Muthaiga Club
Karen married Bror in the Muthaiga Country Club in Nairobi the day after she arrived in Africa. The club was a popular meeting place for the foreign elite in Nairobi. The building where Karen and Bror Blixen were married in 1914 still exists in a wealthy residential suburb of Nairobi. It was created as a bastion of European tradition in the midst of colonial Africa.
The one used in the movie is not the same one, though. It was built in a field across from the house. It was built in a field across from the house. The club didn’t serve women. One of my favorite scenes is when they invite Karen in for a drink to toast her before she leaves Africa.
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Shaba National Reserve
One of the most thrilling situations is when Karen and Denys are forced to defend themselves against a lion attack during their safari trip. The breathtaking Shaba National Reserve in northern Kenya’s Isiolo County serves as the setting for this heart-pounding action. Many of the film's outdoor sequences took place in this protected area, established in 1974.
Guests of Shaba National Reserve can enjoy various activities, such as hot air balloon rides and opulent tented camps, which will transport them to a setting similar to that of Denys Finch Hatton’s filmic yellow biplane.
Mara River
There's an intimate and tender scene where Denys washes Karen's hair on the banks of a river. As he gently rinses her hair, Denys recites verses from "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," adding poetic depth to the moment. This unforgettable scene was filmed on the banks of the Mara River, a vital waterway that begins in Narok County and ends in the Mara Region.
Ngong Hills
After Karen's husband leaves her house for the last time, she finds herself alone with her coffee crops. Despite the hardship of turning a profit, Karen's resilience shines through as she enlists the help of a local tribe to work her farm. The backdrop to this compelling narrative is the breathtaking Ngong Hills; these four peaks form one of the ridges of the Great Rift Valley and offer stunning views of the valley and Nairobi National Park for those who hike to the top.
The Ngong Hills region was a favored location for settlers during colonial times, and colonial-style houses, including Karen Blixen's, can still be found.
English Countryside: Representing Denmark
Karen (Meryl Streep) journeys back to her homeland, Denmark, to secure financial support from her family. In subsequent scenes in Denmark, she returns for medical treatment and finds respite from her husband's (Klaus Maria Brandauer) antics. Interestingly, the scenes set in Denmark were actually filmed in Norfolk and Surrey in England.
The only scene shot outside Africa was of the hunting party in Denmark, which was actually filmed in Northern England. Director Sydney Pollack says they got lucky when it snowed because it doesn’t snow that often there.
Castle Rising, one of England's most famous 12th-century castles, features prominently in the film. The stone keep of the castle, built around 1140 AD, is one of the finest surviving examples of its kind in the country.
Casting and Character Development
Robert Redford was the actor they had in mind for the role of Denys Finch Hatton from the beginning. The problem was that Finch Hatton was an Englishman. Redford used an English accent at first, but those scenes were later dubbed because Pollack decided the role would play better as an American. He felt that Redford was such an American icon that it might be difficult for audiences to believe his character was British.
Klaus Maria Brandauer was director Sydney Pollack's only choice for Bror Blixen, causing problems finding a replacement when it appeared that Brandauer's schedule would prevent him from participating.
Challenges in Filming
Regarding the difficulty of filming with wild animals, Pollack said, “I’m not sure you can ever really train a lion, so whenever we were filming a scene with one, there were several big guys standing nearby with (industrial sized) fire extinguishers, just in case.”
The Music of Out of Africa
The music for Out of Africa was composed and conducted by veteran English composer John Barry. The score included a number of outside pieces such as the second movement Mozart's Clarinet Concerto and African traditional songs. The soundtrack garnered Barry an Oscar for Best Original Score and sits in fifteenth place in the American Film Institute's list of top 25 American film scores.
A visit to my grandaunt Karen Blixen´s Farm in Nairobi, Kenya | allthegoodies.com
Table of Filming Locations
| Location | Description |
|---|---|
| Ngong Hills, Kenya | Backdrop for Karen Blixen's farm and many outdoor scenes. |
| Karen Blixen Museum, Nairobi | Karen Blixen's actual home, now a museum. |
| Shaba National Reserve, Kenya | Location for safari scenes and the lion attack sequence. |
| Mara River, Kenya | Scene where Denys washes Karen's hair. |
| Castle Rising, Norfolk, England | Represented scenes set in Denmark. |
Out of Africa is a cinematic gem that beautifully captures complex emotions and sweeping narratives. The movie was filmed in stunning locales, predominantly in the Karen/Lang'ata region, near the genuine Ngong Hills just outside Nairobi. Out of Africa has contributed significantly to the movie industry, offering a spectacular display of cinematography and art direction. The film is a visual treat, filmed on location and capturing the majestic landscapes of Africa.
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