- Content: “An Existential Romance”
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What You Need To Know:
THE SNOWS OF KILIMANJARO draws you in right away, thanks to the score. It boasts impressive cinematography, featuring shots of diverse African wildlife. The standout performances include Gregory Peck, Susan Hayward, Ava Gardner, and Hildegarde Neff. The movie has a light moral worldview, with a few references to God. It also features a romantic worldview, where the main character aspires to pursue his dreams of being both a writer and a hunter. He seeks these ambitions more than anything else in life, which leaves him empty. MOVIEGUIDE® recommends caution for young children due to naturalistic nudity, scenes involving alcohol and adult themes throughout.
Content:
A light moral worldview where there are a few references to God. An injured woman prays to the Virgin Mary so that someone finds her. A woman tells a man he is going to live when he says he is going to die. A woman says God help us before stabbing her husband’s leg with a hot knife. It also has a romantic worldview where the main character wants to follow his dreams of being a writer and a hunter. He seeks these ambitions more than anything else in life, which leave him empty. He pursues the love of one woman who tells him she is a drag on him, but after a separation and after the man pursues another woman, he writes a letter to her and she writes back while with the other woman.;
One instance of “darn” and one instance of “ass.”;
A baby dies in the mother’s womb after the mother falls, but nothing is shown. A man throws a drinking glass on the floor. Tanks and machine guns fire in a war, explosions ensue, and a car flips over. People fall from the machine gun firing, but there is no blood. A woman has a bloody arm from the car flipping over;
No sex; two kissing scenes between a man and a woman on the lips. A man kisses an injured woman on the cheek and neck. A man grabs a woman in a bikini by her legs while he is in a boat and she is in the water. She says no and states that she is barely wearing anything. The man leaves her alone.;
A woman alludes to sometimes doing nude posing. A woman unbuttons her shirt but has another shirt underneath. A woman swims in a bikini. A woman sculpts a naked woman after a model who has her dress lifted showing her bare shoulders and legs, but nothing graphic. A woman wearing a dress shows her cleavage. A woman wears a bathrobe that shows outline of her nipples;
Three instances of drinking and a man leaves a bar drunk. A man asks for a whiskey soda, but his wife refuses. He later steals it from her only to pour it out.;
Three instances of a man and a woman smoking. A man smokes a pipe. A woman smokes.;
A witch doctor does a ritual with bones. A woman rebukes this even if her husband wants him to stay. After the witch doctor tries to do another ritual, but on the man this time, the woman yells at him to go away. A man calls an African a white man’s burden. The main character and his girlfriend conceive a child out of wedlock. The same woman later references that she has another child, but it is unclear who the father is.
More Detail:
THE SNOWS OF KILIMANJARO begins with Harry in the plains of Kilimanjaro on a bed as he watches a vulture fly and land on a tree where other vultures perch. His wife, Helen, takes care of him, and he complains that he cannot have a whiskey soda when he asks for one. He then starts to think about his past as he falls asleep.
Before Kilimanjaro, Harry pursued a career as a professional writer when he met a woman named Cynthia at a bar, but she danced with another man. He goes to another bar, finds her there, and they smoke and share a passionate kiss. They start dating as Harry publishes his first book and uses his paycheck to go to Africa instead of buying an apartment like Cynthia suggested, which becomes a source of conflict for the pair. Will Harry be able to move on from Cynthia and appreciate his life with his wife, Helen?
THE SNOWS OF KILIMANJARO draws you in right away, thanks to Bernard Herrmann’s powerful score. He does a great job in Alfred Hitchcock’s NORTH BY NORTHWEST, and it is no different here. The movie also boasts impressive cinematography, including shots of various African wildlife, from hippos to a prowling hyena. The standout performances include Gregory Peck, Susan Hayward, Ava Gardner, and Hildegarde Neff. Peck sells it as Harry Street, going from experiencing suffering to joy seamlessly. Susan Hayward does a magnificent job as Harry’s enduring wife, Helen; Ava Gardner kills it as Harry’s first love, Cynthia, who cannot stand being in the way of Harry’s ambitions; and, finally, Hildegarde Neff delivers excellent work as Countess Liz.
The movie has a light moral worldview, with a few references to God. An injured woman prays to the Virgin Mary so that someone finds her. A woman tells a man he is going to live when he says he is going to die. It also features a romantic worldview, where the main character aspires to pursue his dreams of being both a writer and a hunter. He seeks these ambitions more than anything else in life, which leaves him empty. He pursues the love of one woman, who tells him she is a drag on him. However, after the separation, when the man seeks another woman, he writes a letter to her, and she responds while she is still with the other woman.
There are instances of two characters making out, some kissing on the neck and cheek, and some drinking, drunkenness, and smoking. Miscellaneous immorality takes place when A witch doctor does a ritual with bones. A woman rebukes this even if her husband wants him to stay. After the witch doctor tries to do another ritual, but on the man this time, the woman yells at him to go away. A man calls an African a white man’s burden. The main character and his girlfriend conceive a child out of wedlock. The same woman later references that she has another child, but it is unclear who the father is. MOVIEGUIDE® recommends caution for young children.
