L'Africain (1983)

A travel agent (Catherine Deneuve) travels to a remote section of Africa with the intention of starting an upscale resort for tourists. When she arrives, she is surprised to find her estranged husband (Philippe Noiret) in the isolated outpost, now a conservationist and animal activist. Directed by Philippe De Broca (KING OF HEARTS), this is an uneasy combination of romance between two disparate individuals forced together by circumstances (think THE AFRICAN QUEEN) and a social message picture about the destruction of Africa's natural habitat and its indigenous humans and creatures by civilization and poachers. The film benefits greatly from Jean Penzer's stunning wide screen (Panavision) lensing of the Kenya locations and the appealing performances by Deneuve and Noiret. I liked how De Broca avoided a predicatble romantic ending and left us with something more ambiguous and poignant. There's a lovely underscore by Georges Delerue (JULES AND JIM). With Jean Francois Balmer, Jean Benguigui and Vivian Reed.