I Dreamed of Africa 2000

Mark Caro, Chicago Tribune: One reason people attend movies like this is to be transported far from home, and I Dreamed of Africa at least does that. But it needs to do more. Read more

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: This is a Laura Ashley on Safari meditation on bored rich people searching for fulfillment and a new life among the photogenic wildlife of Kenya. Read more

Jay Boyar, Orlando Sentinel: Watching I Dreamed of Africa is like watching paint dry -- except that the paint never actually does dry. Read more

Desmond Ryan, Philadelphia Inquirer: I Dreamed of Africa boasts the majestic landscapes and wildlife that explain why anyone would be spellbound by the place. But the story is fitfully episodic and the jerky editing doesn't help a bit. Read more

Paul West, Seattle Times: It's neither epic enough to fulfill a grand scope, nor intimate enough to be an overpowering emotional experience. Read more

Richard Schickel, TIME Magazine: This film, based on a true story, transcends its handsomeness to present a subtle portrait of a woman's growing consciousness. Read more

Susan Stark, Detroit News: There's not much to grab much less hold attention in this movie. Read more

Philip Wuntch, Dallas Morning News: I Dreamed of Africa will leave you dozing. Read more

Lou Lumenick, New York Post: Out of Africa, which was so bland I'd almost forgotten it, packs a dramatic wallop compared with the enervated storytelling in I Dreamed of Africa. Read more

Lisa Alspector, Chicago Reader: Ultimately the movie is alluring and respectful -- its sadness may be what saves it from becoming sensationalist or trite. Read more

Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: Kim Basinger, as Kuki, is attractive and touching, but she's given one unplayable scene after another. Read more

Steve Murray, Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Africa never gets inside the heads of its characters. They may be based on actual people, but they're flat as cardboard. Read more

David Germain, Associated Press: There's plenty of surface action -- lion, buffalo and snake attacks, elephants slain for their ivory, highway robbery, a vicious windstorm. But the action plays out tiresomely, one nasty turn piled on another, compounding the movie's gloominess. Read more

Keith Phipps, AV Club: In the opening segment of I Dreamed Of Africa, Kim Basinger breaks her leg. The rest of the film is so dull, you can almost hear the bone heal. Read more

Louis B. Parks, Houston Chronicle: The film version is a beautiful, fascinating and moving picture of a courageous life in a strange and humbling paradise. Read more

Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: Director Hugh Hudson (Chariots of Fire) visits adversities as if they were stops on a photo safari. Read more

Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail: It hasn't any rhythm at all, just a string of downbeats and a hackneyed old tune that equates mere survival with heroism. Read more

Peter Rainer, New York Magazine/Vulture: The film, lackadaisically directed by Hugh Hudson, never really makes it humanly clear what keeps Kuki going, but the African vistas are breathtaking -- you were expecting otherwise? -- and so is Kim Basinger. Read more

Jack Mathews, New York Daily News: Basinger's performance is exceptional. She brings a raw, unselfconscious drive to the role that holds the film together, even while Hudson keeps it hopscotching across time. Read more

Stephen Holden, New York Times: Even in the most picturesque segments of I Dreamed of Africa, a film that often has the feel of an epic travelogue, something is missing. Read more

James Berardinelli, ReelViews: Gorgeous to look at but shallow on any meaningful level. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Hugh Hudson's film plays curiously like a friendly documentary of Kuki's life, especially with the voice-over narration that sounds like it belongs in an idealistic travelogue. Read more

Peter Stack, San Francisco Chronicle: It's gorgeous, sure, but I Dream of Africa is surprisingly dull and predictable in its characterizations. Read more

Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune: Basinger handles her role capably, but is absurdly miscast as an Italian, and French actor Perez fails to create credible chemistry with his co-star. Read more

Emanuel Levy, Variety: Pic's lack of dramatic rhythm and narrative continuity is exacerbated by Scott Thomas' rough editing. Read more

Dennis Lim, Village Voice: Similarly anesthetized, director Hugh Hudson keeps the movie rambling and episodic. Read more

Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: It's one picturesque disaster after another. Read more