Frequently Bought Together
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Product Description
Amazon.ca
The 1972 sequel to 1966's classic Born Free doesn't quite measure up to its predecessor, but in an era when most "family entertainment" tends toward the insipid at best, Living Free is still a worthwhile venture. Susan Hampshire and Nigel Davenport take over the roles of Joy and George Adamson, the British couple who, while stationed in Kenya, adopted three orphaned lion cubs. Living Free finds the dying Elsa, their favorite of the original three and now a mother herself, returning to the Adamsons, who must figure out what to do with Elsa's three cubs, who develop an unfortunate appetite for domestic livestock. The film is on the slow side, but once again it's the animals who steal the show; the footage of the young lions interacting with other beasts, from wild giraffes and rhinos to a pet dog, is remarkable. Though light on bonus features, the DVD will surely find its adherents. --Sam Graham
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
By Tony Dale
Format:VHS Tape
Michael, you've mixed up your movies. "Living Free" is NOT the film that was advertised with a Cary Grant glasses clad lion, THAT movie was "Clarence, the Cross-Eyed Lion," and indeed, it was influenced by television's DAKTARI.
The theme from "Living Free" did NOT win the Academy Award, nor was it even nominated; "Born Free," the film to which "Living Free" is a sequel has the distinction of containing John Barry's Oscar winning song.
The theme from "Living Free" did NOT win the Academy Award, nor was it even nominated; "Born Free," the film to which "Living Free" is a sequel has the distinction of containing John Barry's Oscar winning song.
Format:VHS Tape
This was an excellent movie. It is Nick Carter of the BSB's favorite book. I would definitely recommed it to everyone, unless you are an N Sync fan.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3.7 out of 5 stars
18 reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Living Free
Jun 13 2008
By M. Davis
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:DVD
In my opinion, this movie was a genuine attempt to capture the resolve of the Adamsons to help Elsa's three orphaned cubs find their way in the African wilderness. Some have commented that the acting (and the actors) in this sequel to "Born Free" did not show the compassion for animals that those in "Born Free" did. I disagree. In accordance with the story line (which I assume to be more or less faithful to the actual events), the Adamsons had resolved not to become as attached to the cubs as they had been to Elsa. Therefore, they necessarily had to "keep their distance" as it were. I recommend this movie for good family viewing. I also enjoy the theme music and lyrics to this movie, which I think were well-written and appropriate to the content of the movie.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars
Forgotten and forgettable sequel
April 5 2005
By Trevor Willsmer
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:DVD
'Living Free' is one of those obscure sequels to huge hits that most people don't even know exist. In this case it's not hard to see why: it's pretty awful.
Susan Hampshire and Nigel Davenport make poor replacements for Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna. While you wouldn't expect them to match the original couple's easy familiarity, these two don't look like they've even been introduced yet. Worse, the film is a clumsy mess, the first quarter a clumsy rehash of the first film mixing stock footage with awkward reshot word-for-word versions of scenes restaged by the new stars with all the confidence of a blindfolded kid with both legs tied together trying to hit a piñata (although you do get to see Geoffrey Keene play a scene absolutely identically to his performance with the more experienced stars a few years earlier). When the plot does get going in the last half hour there are some genuinely tense scenes as they attempt to cage Elsa the Lioness's cubs to take them to a new reserve before they are destroyed as a menace to local farms, but you'll probably have given up by then. It doesn't even have the benefit of Scope photography or a John Barry score to sugar the pill, often looking more like a poor TV pilot than a real film (and indeed a TV series did briefly follow, albeit with a new cast).
Not good.
Susan Hampshire and Nigel Davenport make poor replacements for Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna. While you wouldn't expect them to match the original couple's easy familiarity, these two don't look like they've even been introduced yet. Worse, the film is a clumsy mess, the first quarter a clumsy rehash of the first film mixing stock footage with awkward reshot word-for-word versions of scenes restaged by the new stars with all the confidence of a blindfolded kid with both legs tied together trying to hit a piñata (although you do get to see Geoffrey Keene play a scene absolutely identically to his performance with the more experienced stars a few years earlier). When the plot does get going in the last half hour there are some genuinely tense scenes as they attempt to cage Elsa the Lioness's cubs to take them to a new reserve before they are destroyed as a menace to local farms, but you'll probably have given up by then. It doesn't even have the benefit of Scope photography or a John Barry score to sugar the pill, often looking more like a poor TV pilot than a real film (and indeed a TV series did briefly follow, albeit with a new cast).
Not good.
13 of 16 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars
No Joy Here
July 25 2005
By Sourpuss
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:DVD
The site of an immaculately turned out Susan Hampshire in thick eyeliner and gleaming white (flared) trouser suit prancing through the Serengeti should serve as an immediate red flag. This is about as far as you can get from Bill Travers' and Virginia McKenna's charming performances in Born Free, never mind invoking the real Adamsons, who led interesting and ultimately tragic lives. Doesn't seem much like Kenya in the fifties to me (I was there). Give it a miss.
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 18 reviews
3.7 out of 5 stars
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Movies & TV > Action & Adventure > Kids & Teens
- Movies & TV > Art House & International > By Country > British Cinema > Action & Adventure
- Movies & TV > Art House & International > By Country > British Cinema > Drama
- Movies & TV > Drama
- Movies & TV > Kids & Family > Adventure
- Movies & TV > Kids & Family > Animals
- Movies & TV > Kids & Family > Drama
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
