The Lions Are Free

This is a commendable documentary movie made by Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers. I really have no words to describe the movie. While featuring the lives of the Lions that were in the movie, Born Free - this production also screams out to the world begging to help keep the wild-life FREE and WILD as they should be. Despite scientific rationales to keep Zoos active (prevention from extinction, etc.) - most people know and agree that an Animal can hardly live a purposeful life behind Bars as Virginia says in this movie. "Would I be happy behind bars"? NO! George Adamson, who devoted all of his life to keep the wildlife free and chose to live with his Lions - far away from the so called civilization and the Luxuries it has to offer - will never be replaced, but his work will always be remembered. I am still surprised to see that only one documentary other than this movie has ever been made on the life of George Adamson - and that too by UK based Yorkshire Television Ltd. shortly before he was mercilessly murdered by Somali Poachers.

I think BBC or National Geographic or any of the other major channels must make an extended documentary on the life of George Adamson aka Baba ya Simba aka Father of Lions. The man whose ultimate trust and friendship with his lions was and will always remain beyond human comprehension. I bow down in respect to this great man and salute the efforts of Bill Travers, and Virginia McKenna and Bill's son and the others who continue the work of wild-life rehabilitation and conservation..

I first watched Born Free at the age of seven and was amazed by how George and Joy Adamson managed to teach a lioness to survive in the wild. I often wondered how they got lions to act in a film - little did I know that the real-life George Adamson was involved in the production, using some of his own lions for the film.

'The Lions Are Free' really is a film that shows exactly what happened to the lions from the movie (Boy, Girl, Ugas, Mara and the cubs). It is good to know that most of them were rehabilitated back into the wild by George Adamson himself, whilst sadly some of them were sent back to zoos.

The film shows that despite being wild, the lions still show great affection towards George and Bill Travers (who had travelled to Kenya to see the lions from the film). Honestly, prior to watching this, I though that George Adamson's work stopped when he released Elsa: I couldn't have been more wrong!

If you like this, you will also like a film called 'Christian: The Lion at World's End.'