"Safari" is set during the Mau Mau Rebellion, a civil war in which the Mau Maus tried to rid Kenya of its Colonial oppressor, Great Britain. However, since the film was made in the 1950s, it seems to side squarely with the British....even though they essentially took over the country and imposed themselves on the locals. It's no wonder there was eventually an uprising in an attempt to gain self-rule.
Early in the story, Ken Duffield (Victor Mature) is off leading a safari, as he's a guide and expert hunter. During his absence, rebels attack his home and murder his family and he is naturally bitter and wants revenge for their deaths. But for now, the British authorities tell him to stay away from his home due to the conflict and their desire to stop him from trying to track down the killers alone. So Ken reluctantly heads to Nairobi.
His chance to leave this sort of exile comes when a man arrives in Nairobi to go on safari. However, he has no one to lead the expedition and they hire Ken. Soon it becomes apparent that the rich guy who hired him is obsessed with killing a lion which is thought to be a man-killer...and nothing else is really important...including his pretty fiancee (Janet Leigh) or anyone else in the safari. What's next? See the film.
During an era when there were a LOT of bad African safari type movies, "Safari" is a standout because of its great location shooting. The animals also do NOT look like the usual crappy stock footage...it looks like they really filmed all this while filming the movie. It also had great color and wide screen cinematography. My only complaint is one tiny and VERY badly done scene. Leigh's character inexplicably decides to go rafting in a river infested with crocs, hippos and with rapids. Who is THAT stupid?! Plus, the rear projection used in the scene is just awful. This entire segment was not needed and the film would have been better had they not used it at all.
While there are a few other minor complaints (such as the scene where Mature shoots the guy at the top of a mountain with a machine gun....an impossible bit of shooting), the movie is surprisingly good. With a few minor changes, I might have scored it even higher.
Early in the story, Ken Duffield (Victor Mature) is off leading a safari, as he's a guide and expert hunter. During his absence, rebels attack his home and murder his family and he is naturally bitter and wants revenge for their deaths. But for now, the British authorities tell him to stay away from his home due to the conflict and their desire to stop him from trying to track down the killers alone. So Ken reluctantly heads to Nairobi.
His chance to leave this sort of exile comes when a man arrives in Nairobi to go on safari. However, he has no one to lead the expedition and they hire Ken. Soon it becomes apparent that the rich guy who hired him is obsessed with killing a lion which is thought to be a man-killer...and nothing else is really important...including his pretty fiancee (Janet Leigh) or anyone else in the safari. What's next? See the film.
During an era when there were a LOT of bad African safari type movies, "Safari" is a standout because of its great location shooting. The animals also do NOT look like the usual crappy stock footage...it looks like they really filmed all this while filming the movie. It also had great color and wide screen cinematography. My only complaint is one tiny and VERY badly done scene. Leigh's character inexplicably decides to go rafting in a river infested with crocs, hippos and with rapids. Who is THAT stupid?! Plus, the rear projection used in the scene is just awful. This entire segment was not needed and the film would have been better had they not used it at all.
While there are a few other minor complaints (such as the scene where Mature shoots the guy at the top of a mountain with a machine gun....an impossible bit of shooting), the movie is surprisingly good. With a few minor changes, I might have scored it even higher.