Review of Hatari! (1962) by Lisa S — 12 Jul 2008

Howard Hawks had a formula which he stuck to all throughout his career -- put a cast of fascinating characters in an out-of-the-ordinary situation and watch what happens. Considering the number of Hawks masterpieces, it turned out to be a pretty good formula. The setting this time is on the plains of Africa, and it concerns a team of trappers who capture animals for zoos. The animal chase scenes are exhilerating and spectacularly filmed, and the African landscapes are simply breathtaking.

This also happens to be Hawks' most character-oriented film (and that's really saying something), and at 2 hours and 40 minutes it really takes its time developing them and fleshing them out. In sharp contrast to the animal chases, the character interaction scenes are very relaxed and laid-back, which I think is actually Hatari!'s greatest weakness; it's too subtle to be effective as a drama or a comedy, and it lacks the suspense or emotional impact of other Hawks films. It does have a great deal of charm, but nothing like the hard-boiled grit of The Big Sleep, the zany, slapstick antics and crackling dialogue of His Girl Friday, or the courageous, life-and-death exploits around which the thrilling and kinetic Rio Bravo is centered. It's still better than anything being released by Hollywood today, though.