Nowhere in Africa
Not much to say here; after finishing "Nowhere in Africa," I seriously wonder about the quality of the other films in the Best Foreign Language in 2001 if this was the winner. Seriously guys, you picked this one???
A Jewish family (mom, dad, daughter), living in Germany in 1938, see what's coming and flee to Kenya to wait out the war. There are the usual culture clashes, the usual attempts at learning the language, the assimilation on both sides, blah blah blah.
"Nowhere in Africa" isn't bad, but it's boring with characters that don't make sense from one scene to the next. It's nothing we haven't seen before; dull, predictable and way, way too long.
"Out of Africa" had a similar setup, similar scenes and yet somehow managed to not suck (I'm sure Streep helped with that one). It had its problems, but it's above and beyond this film. Skip "Nowhere in Africa," and see that instead.
"Nowhere in Africa" (2001)
Written and directed by Caroline Link
Starring: Juliane Köhler (Jettel Redlich)
Merab Ninidze (Walter Redlich)
Sidede Onyulo (Owuor)
Advice noted. "Out of Africa" added to my queue; Streep is a good selling point, especially since having recently seen her in "Doubt." And I'll skip this one; too many movies, not enough time.