Film Snail

Born Free
Born Free

6.8

Born Free

NR·1966·95m

Summary

At a national park in Kenya, English game warden George Adamson and his wife, Joy, care for three orphaned lion cubs. After the two larger lions are shipped off to a zoo in the Netherlands, the smallest of the three, Elsa, stays with the couple. When Elsa is blamed for causing an elephant stampede in the nearby village, head warden John Kendall demands the young lion either be trained to survive in the wilds of the Serengeti or be sent to a zoo.

Crew

Director

Tom McGowan

Director

James Hill

Book

Joy Adamson

Lyricist

Don Black

Screenplay

Lester Cole

Reviews

John Chard

John Chard

March 26, 2016

8

The wonders of Elsa.

Born Free is based on George and Joy Adamson and their raising of a lioness during their time living at a game reserve in Kenya. It's directed by James Hill, adapted to screenplay by Lester Cole, and stars Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers as the Adamsons. Music is by John Barry and cinematography by Kenneth Talbot.

It's a classic case of a family film keeping everything simple for maximum results. A big hit upon release, as was the book written by Joy Adamson, the beautiful landscapes and emotionally swirling musical score marry up perfectly with the story being told. There's some liberties taken with the facts, both with humans and lions, but we aren't in to this pic for any sort of misery or grimy drama. We want, and get, feel good, a time for animal lovers to rejoice and wipe that fly from the eye. 8/10

Media

Status:

Released

Original Language:

English

Budget:

$0.00

Revenue:

$0.00

Keywords

parent child relationship
lion
animal attack
rifle
game warden
lioness
lion cub
animal rights
warthog
wildlife
based on memoir or autobiography