My favorite movie is Out of Africa without a doubt.  The location, the actors, the tragic love story--all of it mesmerized me back in 1985 when I saw it for the first time.    For years afterward, I had this burning desire to visit Africa, go on safari, maybe even live there on a farm. 

 Right after I saw the movie, I went out and bought a khaki safari dress,  almost ankle length with chest pockets and shoulder pads (it was the 80s remember).   I  wore it to work until the cotton fabric was paper thin, prompting some snide remarks from my colleagues.   

Here's an African gourd  I purchased about that time.  

To this day, I tear up when I listen to the  soundtrack CD (photo at top of post).   The music for Out of Africa by John Barrymore, like his other film music, is melancholy and grand--as if to accompany a great historical saga. 

My favorite scene is when Karen Blixen (Meryl Streep) is  out on safari with Denis Finch-Hatton (Robert Redford).  They are drinking wine in crystal glasses and are seated in safari chairs at a cloth-covered table.   I actually don't remember what they were talking about but it was the romantic tension created in the scene that pulled me in.      Will he touch her?    Will they make love?

It's not surprising that this movie would be my favorite.  My previous favorite was Jeremiah Johnson, 1972, also directed by Sydney Pollack.  OK, I will confess to having a crush on Robert Redford for many years. The movie, the story of a rugged mountain man,  prompted me to move to Logan, Utah where I spent all my spare time hiking or backpacking in the mountains.

My Robert Redford Brief Encounter 

I stood within a few feet of Robert Redford in 1975 at Utah State University.  He was there to talk to students about voting for a "green" fee, interesting because this issue has been revived recently on college campuses. He came into the student lounge where a small, mostly female, crowd was anxiously waiting.     As he passed us, the woman next to me took out her camera and snapped a picture but the flash didn't go off.    She tried again but failed.    Redford looked at her and said "You aren't having much luck, are you? "   We both nearly fainted.

When I returned back to work as a research technician in a genetics lab, everyone said I was acting funny.  I guess I was on cloud nine.  I won't go into detail about the fantasies I have had over the years about Redford.

African Trip Someday? 

 I never did save up enough money to go to Africa.  But, I can relive those times with the CD and the DVD.