Nowhere in Africa

Plot

A family on the run for their lives finds themselves in a beautiful but utterly unfamiliar world in this drama based on the autobiographical novel by Stefanie Zweig. Walter Redlich (Merab Ninidze) is a successful Jewish lawyer living in Germany during the rise of the Third Reich. Aware of the increasing dangers of remaining in Germany, Walter seeks exile on a farm in Kenya, while his socially prominent wife, Jettel (Juliane Koehler), and his young daughter, Regina (Lea Kurka), stay behind, as does his father, Max (Gerd Heinz), and Jettel's sister, Kaethe (Regine Zimmermann). In time, as the pogroms against the Jews increase in Germany, Jettel and Regina join Walter in Kenya, but the transition is not easy for Walter, who is still learning the nuts and bolts of running the farm (and discovers that Germans are not welcomed by the British settlers in Kenya), or Jettel, who is not accustomed to physical labor and resents having to help with the farming. While Regina at first finds her new surroundings alienating and unfamiliar, she soon becomes fascinated with the rugged beauty of Kenya and becomes fast friends with Owuor (Sidede Onyulo), who serves as the family's cook. In time, Germany invades Africa, and Walter finds himself in a British internment camp; Jettel and Regina also are captured, but Jettel uses her sexual allure to persuade a British officer to arrange for Walter to be put in charge of another farm, and Regina is sent to a boarding school for girls. After the war, the Redlichs must decide whether to remain in Kenya or to return to the country that would have persecuted them. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Review

As narrated by young Regina, Nowhere in Africa is a straightforward tale of white people among the natives that is gently warmed by the affectionate viewpoint of a child. Though the upper-class Redlichs make it through culture shock, draught, locust attacks, and WWII, they don't ever suffer to the point of uncomfortable viewing. Rather, the attractive cast plays out a family drama full of intimate details set in the vast gorgeousness of the Kenyan plains. By the third act, the images scale down in scope making the once-overwhelming grasslands appear more like a pleasant community of trees and huts. As the central figure of Jettel, Juliane Köhler makes a believable transformation from fussy bourgeois housewife to independent farm manager. Though the narrative does get bogged down with domestic melodrama about the Redlichs' turbulent marriage, it is restored by the story of Regina, played wonderfully by both Lea Kurka and Karoline Eckertz. Bravely encountering each life-altering change, her innocent coming of age leads to sisterly wisdom as well as a liberal world view. The native Kenyan populations -- neither reduced to the background nor given a voice regarding the British colonial rule of their country -- are still sensitively captured in close-ups and granted some choice delicate moments. The house cook Owuor (Sidede Onyulo) is fully characterized as the glue that holds the farm and family together, not to mention the best friend and role model to Regina and language teacher to everyone else. The musical score by Niki Reiser also works to keep things wholly authentic yet tenderly satisfying. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Cast

• Juliane Köhler - Jettel Redlich
• Merab Ninidze - Walter Redlich
• Matthias Habich - Suesskind
• Sidede Onyulo - Owuor
• Lea Kurka - Regina Redlich (younger)
• Karoline Eckertz - Regina Redlich (older)
• Regine Zimmermann - Kaethe

Gerd Heinz - Max; Hildegard Schmahl - Ina; Maritta Horwarth - Liesel; Gabrielle Odinis - Klara; Bettina Redlich - Mrs. Sadler; Julia Leidl - Inge; Mechthild Grossmann - Elsa Konrad; Peter Lenaeku - Jogona as a Boy; Silas Kerati - Jogona as an Adult; Kanya Man; Andy Rashleigh - Captain Caruther; Anthony Bate - Mr. Brindley; David Michaels - Robert Green; Andrew Sachs - Mr. Rubens; Diane Keen - Mrs. Rubens; Herbert Knaup - Walter Redlich; Dokdin Kanyaman - Kimani; Kenny Brown - Bure; Marian Lösch - Johannes; Steve Weston - Mr. Morrison; Joel Wajsberg - Hubert; Miriam Wajsberg - Ruth; Bela Klenze - Boy With Sledge; Levit Pereira - Daji Jiwan; Steven Price - British Officer in Norfolk; M.M. Shah - Patel

Credit

Andorthe Braker - Casting, Beth Charkham - Casting, Lenny Juma - Casting, Uwe Bünker - Casting, Agentur Jacqueline Rietz - Casting, Benedict Mirow - Consultant/advisor, Rainer Bartesch - Conductor, Bernd Eichinger - Co-producer, Sven Ebeling - Co-producer, Thilo Kleine - Co-producer, Michael Weber - Co-producer, Barbara Grupp - Costume Designer, Susanne Liebetrau - Continuity, Scott Kirby - First Assistant Director, Tony Rimwah - First Assistant Director, Nicolai Semjevski - First Assistant Director, Sebastian Sorger - First Assistant Director, Caroline Link - Director, Patricia Rommel - Editor, Andreas Bareiss - Executive Producer, Niki Reiser - Composer (Music Score), Karin Gatzke - Musical Direction/Supervision, Nanni Gebhardt-Seele - Makeup, Stephanie Hilke - Makeup, Renate Bauer - Makeup, Jeanette Latzelsberger - Makeup, Elke Lebender - Makeup, Uli Madej - Makeup, Dorota Martyn - Makeup, Maria Seidle - Makeup, Kerstin Stattmann - Makeup, Michael Praun - Camera Operator, Susann Bieling - Production Designer, Uwe Szielasko - Production Designer, Gernot Roll - Cinematographer, Chris Evert - Production Manager, Mark Nolting - Production Manager, Peter Herrmann - Producer, Peter Hermann - Producer, Sandra Vontobel - Singer, Erwin Gschwind - Special Effects, Pitt Rotter - Special Effects, Tschangis Chahrokh - Sound Mixer, Andreas Wölki - Sound/Sound Designer, Marcel Spisak - Sound/Sound Designer, Einar Marell - Sound/Sound Designer, Magda Habernickel - Sound/Sound Designer, Annette Prey - Sound/Sound Designer, Soundabout - Sound/Sound Designer, Anja Giessing - Unit Production Manager, Yahya Chavanga - Unit Production Manager, Frank Kusche - Unit Production Manager, Heike Käbisch - Unit Production Manager, Axel Rottmann - Unit Production Manager, Caroline Link - Screenwriter, Stefanie Stalf - Digital Effects, Thomas Zauner - Digital Effects, CA Scanline Production GmbH - Digital Effects, Andrea Geiger - Digital Effects, Jan Krupp - Digital Effects, Christian Pokorny - Digital Effects, Martin Riedle - Digital Effects, Jael Bertschinger - Musical Performer, Magatte Ndiaye - Musical Performer, Kiku Pedroso - Musical Performer, Lutz Schilling - Musical Performer, Symphonieorchester Basel - Musical Performer, Axel Vogelmann - Post Production Supervisor, Juliane Schulze - Production Coordinator, Britta Lauber - Production Coordinator, Jenny Pont - Production Supervisor, Mel Kutbay - Sound Effects Director, Mike Bartlett - Steadicam Operator, Suzy Belcher - Costume/Wardrobe, Senay Ay - Costume/Wardrobe, Wolfgang Hess Jr. - ADR Editor, Murat Baskan - Foley Editor, Jürgen Tröster - Production Executive, Stefanie Zweig - Book Author, Karen Hoppe - ADR Supervisor

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