Königin der Wildnis (1966)

Königin der Wildnis: Directed by James Hill, Tom McGowan. With Virginia McKenna, Bill Travers, Geoffrey Keen, Peter Lukoye. The story of George and Joy Adamson and the orphaned lion cub, Elsa, they adopt.

“True life story. George and Joy Adamson (Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna) live in the wilderness in Kenya. In self defense, George kills a lion and his mate only to find they were protecting their three cubs. He and his wife decide to raise the cubs. They give two of them away to zoos, but canu0026#39;t part with Elsa, a lioness. But then they realize they canu0026#39;t keep her and donu0026#39;t want to put her in a zoo. Can they help her live in the wild?u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI read the book u0026quot;Born Freeu0026quot; when I was in grammar school in the 70s and loved it. I also vaguely remember seeing the movie on TV (and liking it) and the very short-lived (13 episodes) series in the early 70s. Also the song was a big hit in the mid 60s and again in the early 70s. But I had forgotten all about it until it popped up on TCM. I decided to tune in and loved it!u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe movie was shot beautifully on location in Kenya (where it took place). Wide screen viewing is essential for this one. Also, Travers and McKenna were a real-life couple when they did this film (in fact they remained married until his death in 1994) and there devotion to each other comes through loud and clear. Also the lions (male and female) are SO cute when theyu0026#39;re cubs and even beautiful as they get older. Elsa herself was portrayed by a number of different lionesses but you canu0026#39;t tell the difference. And Travers and McKenna worked with all the animals for 2 weeks before filming so they all interact together perfectly. This is perfect family viewing–adults will adore it as much as the kids.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIu0026#39;m only giving it a 7 for a few reasons–there isnu0026#39;t much of a story and the film DOES drag a little. Also the cute little shots of the cubs get a little bit much. Yeah they are adorable, but it got to the point that I thought the filmmakers were purposely shoving them in our faces to get us to go u0026quot;awwwwwwwwu0026quot;! A little bit too cute for my tastes.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eStill itu0026#39;s a great film and the music in this one is fantastic (and Oscar-winning). Also I defy anyone not to cry during the final sequence–it even got to me and Iu0026#39;m the last person to cry at movies like this.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eA very good family film. See it!”