Customer Reviews

Born Free

5 star:		(67)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I grew up reading Joy Adamson's trilogy about Elsa, the lioness ['Born Free', 'Living Free' and 'Forever Free'], and Elsa has remained always very dear to my heart, an unforgettable furry heroine. This film is an excellent and truthful adaption of Mrs. Adamson's wonderful book. In the late 1950's Kenyan Game Warden George Adamson and his wife Joy became the foster parents of three female lion cubs whose mother had been killed by mistake. They eventually decided to send two cubs away to a zoo and keep the smallest cub which had become the most dear to them. This was Elsa and she would acquire world fame. Much joy and heartbreak followed when the Adamsons ultimately decided to rehabilitate Elsa back into the wild. Since in their opinion that is where she belonged. After a difficult adjustment they were rewarded with success.

This film which was shot on location in Kenya and directed by Tom McGowan and James Hill is a remarkably intelligent and truthful adaption. It follows Elsa from cub hood to motherhood and superbly brings to life the joys and heartbreak which Elsa and the Adamsons went through together. Much of this is due to the excellent, dedicated and vibrant performances of Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna (who are real life husband and wife) as the Adamson couple. The Travers couple worked closely with George Adamson who was an advisor for this film in regard with the lions. Since they aimed at natural performances by the lions. Friendship would develop between the Travers and the Adamsons and they bonded firmly with the lions. After this film the Adamsons would continue with the rehabilitation of big cats back into the wild and the Travers besides acting went into wildlife conservation.

Since the heroine of this film is a furry one, something certainly needs to be said about the lionesses, lions and cubs who gave such wonderful and gripping performances here. The part of Elsa was taken by the lionesses Girl, Mara and Henrietta and the dedication and love of George Adamson and the Travers brought them to outstanding performances.

A film with many funny, comic, touching and sometimes heart wrenching moments and there's also the gorgeous Kenyan scenery to enjoy. It has rightly become a classic!

I saw this movie 25(?) years ago and cried as a little girl. Now that I am 38 and I watched it again from a completely different perspective, I think I cried even more. This is a movie that ALL must see!! It is the most heart-warming story ever written. I am so glad that Joy and George Adamson shared their story of Elsa with the rest of the world!!!!

"Born Free" is a true story about the adoption of a wild lion cub by a game warden in Kenya and his wife who are eventually confronted with two choises, either carrying out the tedious task of introducing the cub back to the wild in three months, or sacrificing her freedom by giving her to a zoo. The two people go through everything that is inevitable when you have a large cat for a pet. The film has its share of emotional moments like when the Adamsons get the cubs to lap up milk for the first time, and the time when the adolescent Elsa is isolated for a few days and is found wounded and unstable. But they are well balanced out with the amusing situations like Elsa riding on the hood of the truck and her bringing a two year-old elephant calf to the camp etc.

The film is so polished and of high quality that unless one is aware that it was made in '66, he/she will undoubtedly be lead to think that it was made in at least 1980. I was really surprised. I will add however, that I watched the film on TV yesterday for the first time and that is what my review is based on. Anyway I doubt the VHS is any different. So clever is the film in getting its points and objectives across that even people who aren't into wildlife movies will enjoy this, as I observed while I was watching. You have to admit, you don't often see a lioness swimming in the ocean and playing "foot" ball, do you? Also, the film runs for around 1 hour & 40 minutes. Long enough for you? I strongly recommend this film to anyone.

I've probably seen this movie somewhere between 15 to 20 times since I was a kid. (I also read the book many moons ago.) It never ceases to entertain and is guaranteed to bring tears to your eyes by the time the song "Born Free" resounds at the end. Born Free is the wonderful true story of the raising of Elsa, the lioness, by Joy and George Adamson (sorry to correct another reviewer, but Virgina McKenna was the actress who played Joy Adamson, so it's not the story of Elsa and the McKenna's). The story is heart warming, can be seen by the whole family, & will make you want to book a trip to Kenya when it's all said and done. No question, this is one of my favorites of all time!

Based on a true story, as told by Joy Adamson in her book of the same title, this 1966 film remains compelling today. The movie follows the adventure of a British couple, game warden George Adamson and his wife (Joy, author of the book), living in Kenya in the 1950s, who become surrogate parents for a litter of three orphaned lion cubs. When the mother is shot in self-defense, the Adamsons bring the cubs into their home, planning to turn them over to the Rotterdam Zoo as soon as the zoo is ready to receive them. However, Joy forms a strong bond with the smallest of the cubs, whom she names Elsa, and ultimately cannot bear to part with her. So while Elsa's siblings eventually depart for the zoo, Elsa herself stays with the Adamsons. At first all goes well, but as Elsa grows into a mature lioness, it quickly becomes apparent that she cannot remain with her human family. And so, rather than send Elsa to a zoo and subject her to life in a cage, Joy is determined to do something no one has ever done successfully before - teach a tame lion to survive in the wild, and ultimately set her free.

The acting is good, with real-life couple Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna playing George and Joy Adamson (McKenna also narrates the story as Joy via voice-over, pulling passages from the book). There are a few places where the dialogue seems slightly forced, but for the most part it is very sincere. The real star of the show, though, is Elsa herself, actually played by three different lionesses. You can really see the genuine affection between the large cat and her caretakers as they interact. It is magical to watch.

"Born Free" relies on none of the modern-day tactics for holding an audience's attention. There is very little violence of any sort, no gore, no explosions, no sweeping romance, no sex, and as far as I could tell, not even a single swear word. The only fight scene is one between two lions, and the only chases are lions going after prey. Yet the movie maintains the ability to captivate a viewer entirely. It may hold the highest appeal for children, but animal-loving adults are sure to love it, too. I first saw this movie as a kid, but when I recently re-watched it after many years I was happy to find that it remained thoroughly enjoyable. I would warn, though, that very small children may possibly be frightened by the lion attack scene at the very beginning. The attack itself is now shown, but the lion's leap and the victim's scream are. I remember being a little unnerved by this part when I was little, so if you have a very young child, it may be best to watch this scene yourself first to determine whether it's likely to bother them.

The one thing that worries me a bit about this story is the fact that the Adamsons actually used gunshots to call Elsa to them. Even at the end of the film, Elsa still displays no fear of either guns or humans. Such a lack of fear can be quite very detrimental to a wild animal, particularly in an area where lions are often shot to protect livestock. I don't fault the makers of the movie at all, since this is based on events as they really happened and the movie couldn't have been filmed differently without altering the story, but it's still a little worrisome.

The entire movie was filmed on location in Kenya, and the scenery is gorgeous. Unfortunately, the picture quality is not as crisp as you would see in movies made today. However, it is full color and still quite decent. The sound quality is slightly disappointing. It is occasionally difficult to make out what is being said, but turning up the volume enough to hear the dialogue clearly in turn makes the music a little too loud for comfort. I have no idea if either the picture quality or the sound have been touched up at all in the DVD version, as I only own the VHS, but neither is enough of a problem to interfere with the enjoyment of the movie, and one can easily forgive these things in a movie made nearly four decades ago. On the whole, this is a terrific family film and is just as touching and fun as it must have been when it first came out. And if you're the type that gets a kick out of watching your cats watch TV, this one has the potential to catch their interest as well, as it did mine.

Having first seen this movie in my youth and recently watching it again as an adult, it has never lost its charm or appeal and I think it deserves to stand as one of the most fulfilling and heartwarming family films ever made. As it is based on a true story, that makes it even better. And what a story it is too.

Game warden George Adamson and his wife Joy are residents in Kenya, Africa and relate their experiences of raising an orphaned lion cub after the mother has been shot out of self-defense reasons. Actually it is three lion cubs but two are sent off to a zoo and the third, eventually named Elsa, is raised by Joy Adamson. It is interesting and enjoyable to watch the interaction of the cub with the adults and the relationship that grows ever closer between them. Upon raising the cub to maturity, it becomes a difficult time for the Adamson's knowing that releasing the grown lion into the wild is the only real answer. Due to being tame for so long, it is Joy's responsibility now to train Elsa to be able to survive on its own and she does an admirable job. When the fateful day finally comes, it tugs at the heart strings to see the emotional effects on the Adamson's when releasing something they love so dearly. It is also inspiring knowing that they cared so much and did it for all the right reasons. It eventually makes for a wonderful end to a great movie.

As for the film particulars, the cinematography is very attractive in Africa and the accompanying music is a perfect compliment to everything else. The acting is so innocent and natural you can almost be fooled into believing this isn't a movie. For being a timeless classic that is now over 4 decades old, this movie stands the test of time and will always be a treasure for anyone and everyone. This is a highly recommended film all around.

This is one of my favorite movies. I first saw it as a child, and recently ordered the DVD version of the movie from Amazon.com. The movie brought back alot of memories, and I believe it has lost little impact from the time it was originally released in the mid-1960s. The story is a great one, the scsnerey in the movie is beautiful, and the acting is very good. The performance of the lioness in the film is spectacular.

What I find particularly pleasing, in comparison with the movies of today, is the absence of human-on-human violence, sex, car chases, explosions, special effects, etc. This movie stands alone on its own merit - the power of the storyline and the heartwarming, though sad, story of the lioness named Elsa. People of all ages and backgrounds who have a great appreciation for nature and life will definitely enjoy this movie.

As old of a movie as Born Free is, it will always be a true classic. Based on the true story of Joy and George Adamson and their experiences raising the lioness named Elsa, Born Free is a heartwarming story of unconditional love. When George is called upon to kill a male lion that was known for killing and mauling local people in Kenya, he stumbles across 3 small helpless lion cubs which he brings home. Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers, who play Joy and George Adamson deliver a wonderful performance. Joy and George sucessfully rear these 3 cubs with 2 of them eventually going off to zoos. All 3 cubs were loved and well taken care of but because of Joy's love and fondness of the 3rd cub she named Elsa, the Adamson's decided to keep Elsa and raise her themselves with the intention of one day teaching her to hunt on her own and eventually releasing her to be free and survive on her own in the wild. We see the love that can be shared between people and yes, even a lioness. There are many touching moments in this film. Being filmed in Africa, we get to see the beauty of the areas that Elsa roamed and shared with the Adamsons. We experience the heartbreak that Joy endured when it was time to set Elsa free to be on her own. Elsa never forgot her adopted parents and visited them often. The Adamson's hard work paid off as Elsa returned to the wild and survived on her own and eventually found a mate and gave birth to 3 cubs of her own. There is a part 2 and 3 to Born Free and they are Living Free and Forever Free. Both are great movies as we follow Elsa's 3 cubs after her death. There are also books written by Joy Adamson with the same titles. This movie will truly touch your heart in many ways. The song Born Free will forever remind me of Elsa and what a special lioness she was along with the Adamsons who succeeded at doing something that no one else had ever done.... raise a lion cub and return it to the wild to survive and thrive on her own. A must have movie that will always remain a Classic in every way.

Without bombs, bullet, swear words, light sabers, bathroom humor, or any special effects, this managed to hold a wide age range group's attention. Other reviewers have commented a lot about the VHS movie, so let me confine my remarks to the DVD.

Actually, as DVDs go, this is not so great. The movie makes you very curious about a lot of things: how in the heck did they train the animals to make all their moves for the camera? how true to life is the story? and so on. The DVD, by virtue of totally lacking extras, utterly fails to answer any of those questions. The picture has that of-an-era very colorful and yet simultaneously slightly washed out look that begs, nay screams, for some kind of color correction. And the sound clearly has effects of tape compression or something; it is not very open (I listened in stereo, and don't know if there is a 5.1 track).

If you're looking for a reference DVD with gorgeous cinematography of African scenes, this isn't it (due to the color imbalance)l. I give it 5 stars anyway simply because the movie is so well made.

I bought a couple VHS copies of "Born Free" for myself and for my nephews last Christmas, thinking "that would be a nice, clean movie for kids to have", and I was not disappointed. You are instantly struck by the innocence of this movie. As another reviewer on this page wrote, I too cried more watching it as an adult and my husband and I remarked that we were really moved by it. Joy Adamson (played by Virginia McKenna) making her tearful speech about Elsa's right to be free struck us to the heart, that scene alone is enough to make this movie a classic.

Since seeing it again I have bought more as gifts for kids and for people who have grandkids. It is the favorite of our 17 month old, we always watch with him and skip the two very brief shooting scenes and the scene where Elsa kills the warthog, mind you these scenes are not graphic at all and they are very brief but he still put two and two together and cried. He was also upset by the cubs knocking over stuff and spilling the milk at first, but he quickly came to understand that that was okay. He loves this movie so much and begs all the time to see it. After seeing it the first time, we found him with his stuffed toys gathered around him "feeding" them from his bottle, like Joy and the lion cubs.

Due to the movie being made in the 60's, there is the one pitfall of the movie, the fact that the white characters have black African servants. The main black character is loved by all viewers of the movie, but still, the black employees are clearly in servitude and this jumps out at you; this element obviously has to be explained to kids but the movie is true to its time in history and of value to children despite this, and perhaps also because of this historical lesson.

Kids of all ages that we've seen watching this, (who have been raised on today's kids' movies that are so full of aggression, violence, sarcasm, etc,) were not at all bored by this innocent movie but instead were instantly captivated by it. All ages of viewers are so uplifted when Elsa gets to be free and be with her own kind. This movie is so uplifting, it's about freedom, the dignity of living creatures, compassion, responsibility, love, and hope. Beautiful scenery and animal footage, plus plenty of lighter moments and laughs. Adults get a little chuckle out of the very polite script, straight from the 1960's, though it is like a breath of fresh air, and of course there's the wonderful theme song which you will find yourself singing in the car and shower. Get out the popcorn and snuggle the whole family on the couch to watch this one.