I've voiced my displeasure at the current state of Disney movies before and pointed out how vastly different they are in the 21st Century to movies that were made as recently as the 90s.
Reese Witherspoon plays Nonnie Parker and Ethan Embry her reluctant friend Harry. Both kids are living with their parents in rural Africa when their home is attacked by Ivory poachers. With their bushman friend Xhabbo as a guide the kids take off across the Kalahari desert to reach the safety of the coast and nearest town, while the poachers plan to kill off their only witnesses.
A Far Off Place opens with the massacre of a herd of elephants. The killers themselves are then mercilessly gunned down by supporting hero Col. Theron. Would Disney DARE allow a scene like this in the 21st Century? Look at the quality of Tim Allen's The Shaggy Dog and you'll find your answer. For any family-orientated movie it takes some nerve to open with killing such as this but even 16-year-old Nonnie herself is at ease yielding a rifle and doesn't hesitate to blow-up bad guys.
The African desert scenery is gorgeous and director Mikael Salomon (who also made the underrated Hard Rain) fills the movie with lovely cinematography. The dunes, the blue sky, the night sky...it all makes you wish for a sunny holiday.
A Far Off Place (a combination of two novels "A Story Like the Wind" and "A Far Off Place" by Laurens Van der Post) is not a well known movie and is quite hard to find, but it's worth hunting down. A shame that such a good movie has fallen off the radar.
Reese Witherspoon plays Nonnie Parker and Ethan Embry her reluctant friend Harry. Both kids are living with their parents in rural Africa when their home is attacked by Ivory poachers. With their bushman friend Xhabbo as a guide the kids take off across the Kalahari desert to reach the safety of the coast and nearest town, while the poachers plan to kill off their only witnesses.
A Far Off Place opens with the massacre of a herd of elephants. The killers themselves are then mercilessly gunned down by supporting hero Col. Theron. Would Disney DARE allow a scene like this in the 21st Century? Look at the quality of Tim Allen's The Shaggy Dog and you'll find your answer. For any family-orientated movie it takes some nerve to open with killing such as this but even 16-year-old Nonnie herself is at ease yielding a rifle and doesn't hesitate to blow-up bad guys.
The African desert scenery is gorgeous and director Mikael Salomon (who also made the underrated Hard Rain) fills the movie with lovely cinematography. The dunes, the blue sky, the night sky...it all makes you wish for a sunny holiday.
A Far Off Place (a combination of two novels "A Story Like the Wind" and "A Far Off Place" by Laurens Van der Post) is not a well known movie and is quite hard to find, but it's worth hunting down. A shame that such a good movie has fallen off the radar.