Several pieces of Hemingway fiction fold together for this pastiche movie, in which a writer (Gregory Peck) lies on the slope of Africa's famous mountain and thinks back on his life while awaiting medical attention. "Afric... more »a" in this case is a back-screen projection; fortunately, the majority of the film is told through flashbacks set in France, Spain, and other parts of the Dark Continent. Peck's relationships with various women (played by Susan Hayward, Ava Gardner, and Hildegard Knef) are at the center of his recollections, but the overall thesis is a very Hemingway-esque summary of the responsibility of a writer to get at the truth. --Tom Keogh« less
A classic with a strong start and decent ending but had some slow road bumps.
Movie Reviews
THIS is the official Fox "Snows of Kilimanjaro" DVD to get!
JayDee | Virginia | 03/13/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"For the first time in home video history, Twentieth Century-Fox Home Entertainment has released "The Snows of Kilimanjaro" in a NON-public domain edition. Since the advent of the VCR, "The Snows of Kilimanjaro" has been resigned to crappy, public domain videos from just about every cheapy distributor around. FINALLY Twentieth Century-Fox, the original studio behind this classic, has taken it from the public domain and given it a proper home video release on DVD. If you love this fan, you can use all previous DVDs of this film for coasters for your drink as you enjoy this marvel. Completely remastered and restored, "Snows" is nothing less than a technical wonder. For years I thought the only way to watch this film was on washed out, dark and scratchy prints. No more! Twentieth Century-Fox gives us a glowing transfer, superb soundtrack and loads of extras. Included as part of the "Ernest Hemmingway Film Collection", this DVD is also sold separately, which is basis for this review. Do not hesitiate to buy this version, which currently retails for under 20 bucks. It is worth every penny! Good-bye poor quality PD DVDs, hello "Snows of Kilimanjaro" the way it was meant to be seen!"
A dissatisfied viewer
R. Bidwell | 02/02/2003
(1 out of 5 stars)
"The quality of this DVD is terrible. The sound track is off and does not match up with the visual speaking of the actors. The DVD kept jumping back to the beginning of the movie every few minutes. It was impossible to watch this product."
Snows of Kilimanjaro
R. Bidwell | Bradenton, Fl United States | 10/23/2003
(1 out of 5 stars)
"Bought the DVD in assembling a Gregory Peck collection. Version was the one with Ava Gardner on the cover of the pack. The film was complete, but there was annoying technical noise, and quite a bit of fluttering in the picture. I may at some point buy another version of this DVD, but I do not recommend the technical quality of this particular production."
An interesting Hemingway adaptation
David Kaminsky | Edmonton, Alberta Canada | 05/24/2003
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Ernest Hemingway hated this adaptation of his work, and disparagingly referred to it as "The Snows of Zanuck." I think he was overestimating his own writing, and I think the film is no worse than the work upon which it was based. Methinks he doth protest too much. Hemingway was heard to grumble: "I sold Zanuck one short story, not my whole body of works." The Casey Robinson screenplay is witty and honest, with the right blend of cynicism and naivetee. Gregory Peck is a gruff, grumbly, handsome-as-a-devil Hemingway "hero," and Ava Gardner makes a memorable, heartbreakingly beautiful Cynthia. Susan Hayward makes the best of the film's most thankless role (she looks great in a pith helmut, too). The layers of flashbacks perfectly convey the sense of a man reevaluating his past as he faces imminent death. Much has been made of the ending, and the way it deviates from the original story. I don't see the sunny Hollywood ending purists have denounced, since we really don't know the status of the dying writer as the helicopter arrives. The soundtrack is a bit loopy and out-of-synch in places, and the special effects (especially the river crossing) look pretty bad by today's standards, but the acting adds a depth and humanity which is missing from Hemingway's original work. A fun piece of escapist safaridrama along the lines of the superior "King Solomon's Mines" or "Mogambo.""
Great Copy for ONE Dollar
kametamorphic | East Haven | 12/19/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I only paid a dollar for this DVD and this is one of the best copies I have found of this film. In THE SNOWS OF KILMANJARO writer Gregory Peck reflects on the loves in his life as he lays waiting to die at the base of Kilimanjaro in this Hemingway story. The story juxtaposes his past live with his true Ava Gardner and the present with his wife Susan Hayward. THE SNOWS OF KILMANJARO has a very good Bernard Herrmann score. John DeCuir and Lyle R. Wheeler's Art Direction is exquisite and adds to the strange mystique of this film. Henry King's direction is rather ethereal."