Geheimnisse der Steppe

Really a superb nature documentary, a captivating watch. I can't think of a better film on the wild kingdom. Why isn't this available on video? This is not specifically a film about lions as it's title implies, this is a film about the African wild, untouched, with fascinating looks at the life and times a full variety of species including elephants, rhino's, giraffes, antelope, monkeys, leopards, and more..

Near the beginning, the narrator says; "This is Africa, The Lions Realm.." which would have been a more appropriate title. The film covers a lot of different species, and it does so in a way that enables the viewer to both absorb specific insights into the daily existence of individual creatures, while at the same time experience the essence of the wild as a whole.

Now admittedly, I love nature and wildlife type shows; and my opinion is that this production made over 50 years ago, is amongst kings of nature films.

The amazing miracle about this film is not just the world of patience spent during three years to catch all these animals and their ways of life on film, not just the brilliant camera technique in approaching the animals to their intimacy, not just the broad universal scope of the presentation of African wild life, but above all to make the music illustrate it all with incredible precision of observation, timing and faithfulness, as if the animals did what they did conducted by the music. Paul Smith was applied in several Walt Disney films and always with more eloquent results than he was given any credit for. Walt Disney displayed a knack for this already in "Bambi", in which the music carefully follows the entire narrative with overwhelming faithfulness and precision, and the same miracle is presented here, like also in other documentaries of his like "The Living Desert". This is a quality in Walt Disney that is generally overlooked, his immense musicality and skill of applying it to his films, to make them wonders of experience both visually, mentally and musically.

I saw this documentary in 1960 at age 11 and never forgot it. It was very well done. It is wonderful. I watched with my father who is gone for 28 years. I was so impressed with the beauty of the species that spent collecting everything I could about animals. The scenes are beautifully shot and encourage children to like and, of course, preserve animal life. Fantastic, wonderful. Just the initial presentation of the documentary to paint the map of Africa and its different regions, it is a lesson in Geography.In the following years despite developments in technology not seen documentaries that level which makes it even more valuable. It is an example of a job well done.Unfortunate not copy for sale there.

Another Disney Plus documentary, near the top alphabetically is "The African Lion" an addition to the "True Life Adventures" documentary series that was originally released in 1955, when animal documentaries were perhaps not as ubiquitous as they are now - indeed you can only imagine that for many this was their first ever look at African wildlife in their natural habitat.

Alfred and Elma Milotte spent three years filming the African Wildlife in three countries in Africa, Kenya, Tanganika (Now part of Tanzania) and Uganda. Their film focuses on African Lions and their behaviours but widens to show the rest of the ecosystem and how the animals interact with one another. Though the film is edited to provide a narrative of sorts, it's (thankfully) not the same cloying method as utilised with "A Tale of Two Critters".

Honestly, despite its age, I found myself sticking with "The African Lion" through to its conclusion and appreciating a lot of what I saw. It was edited to a really impressive orchestral score that I enjoyed and had some truly stunning visuals. The sky so full of locusts they reflect the sun and look like a flowing silver sea is something I hadn't seen before and that will stay with me.

Hidden cameras and High definition have, of course, surpassed this film in terms of showing the animal kingdom, but this was impressive for it's time and still retains some of that power today.

There are more than lions in this Disney True Life survey of the African veldt, where an Impala is the largest antelope, not the largest Chevrolet -- although I doubt we'll soon see a subcompact called dik-dik. It tells the story of the African year, running from birthing in the time of green grass, through daily life to the time of no water and a plague of locusts, until the rains come again. while surveying the variety of creatures on land, in the air and under the water.

Disney sent a camera crew under Alfred and Elma Milotte; it took them three years to take enough pictures for Disney's editors and story men to assemble into this movie. It's a fine piece of work, and look out for the rhinoceros trapped in the mud!