i dream of africa or ( 2000 ) i dream of africa and the true story of kuki gallmann and be a dull and slow move journey into the gorgeous heart of africa . although visually entice and this material seem more appropriate a an autobiography book . i felt the movie would be more at home with audience if release around three decade ago . hugh hudson ( chariot of fire ) try to create his drama with an old fashioned appearance . to his own demise and however and the director succeed . watch kim basinger and vincent perez on screen be like study forsake lore while not worthy of magnificent cinematic filming . kim basinger be the middle age kuki gallmann and a struggling divorce parent living in 1972 while nurture her young son and emanuele . she live in italy near her snobbish mother and franca ( eva marie saint ) who like a customary lifestyle and but kuki herself be ready for change . kuki soon marries paolo ( vincent perez ) and and then and much to her mother alarm and move to kenya and africa . her family buy a small ranch near the great rift valley and purchase huge amount of property . in this admirable landscape and the filmmaker capture the gleam life of africa exquisitely . the scenery and wildlife be film with an inspirational and harmonious melody . this story be dishearten and phony and sketchy and melodramatic and and lifeless . it feel contrive and lack conflict and irony and romance and and intrigue . kim basinger and vincent perez form no relationship with their character . the most passion we witness between them be a short sensual sequence in which the two briefly make love . from a so call lush and emotional production and the audience require much more than what the film offer . instead of form active participation with a goal or problem that the film woman of admirable exploit must overcome and the movie assigns separate incidence involve kuki to compensate for the lack of tension . here be some of the occurrence and the problem with each represent1 ) kuki son be send off to school a she and her husband struggle emotionally . ( there be no development of emanuele . therefore and we do not care along with the character . ) 2 ) kuki cattle be be infect with deadly disease by a local native american tribe . ( there be no examination of the indian and therefore we be not able to follow along with kuki protest . ) 3 ) kuki must deal with the fear of paolo be kill on dangerous hunt trip he take with his friend . ( paolo and kuki never create chemistry and so the audience may not buy them a a close couple . ) 4 ) kuki becomes rugged after protect her property from wild animal and prepare the ranch for a disastrous sandstorm and and team up with friend to rid her land of evil poacher . ( how do the native make a living . farm . ranch . the film do not even investigate the land in which the character live . how be we suppose to become involved with kuki property conflict . ) 5 ) kuki must deal the compiling stress of be a ranch hand in africa and especially when people close to her heart pas away . ( i do not care that much about the character . ) the film obvious dialogue explains nearly every nugget within the story . kuki extremely important character be development orally while personality be replace with wordy clarification . moreover and we witness none of the crucial event of the plot and like kuki previous marriage and her divorce and nor the childhood of emanuele . if the writer be abreast with colorful subtext and or the least bit clever in their ability and the movie still may have recover from this flaw . however and screenwriter paula milne and susan shilliday be much to blunt to be effective . i question the quality of kim basinger performance here . at certain time in the film she capture her character deprive solitude flawlessly and at others she look a if in a melodramatic soap opera episode . this potentially effective actress ( who dazzle in the oscar nominate thriller la confidential ) seem to be hold back by the film and which do not allow her much leeway to explore her character . vincent perez be good in his role and but like most side performer here and his only purpose be to aid in development of kuki emotional status . i dream of africa be not the bad movie in release at this time and but perhaps the most sappy . kim basinger overact and the filmmaker shameless usage of african territory and and the many burden place upon the main character lead to a conclusion of remote emptiness . the audience walk away with a feeling of unsatisfied hollowness . i almost feel guilty for negatively criticize a movie about a person i respect so much but not enough so to recommend this movie . .