The main .
character, Colonel John Patterson, is an Irish engineer who is sent by Britain to get a crucial rail .
road project back on to schedule after the attacks have brought work almost to a complete halt. .
Colonel Patterson is a young handsome man with a great enthusiasm to see Africa. He is a .
brilliant engineer, but is quite naive about the continent. Soon after his arrival he witnesses one of .
the bold day-time attacks made by one of the lions. He immediately steps up to the task of killing .
the beasts and begins his hunt. After several failed attempts to lure and trap the animals, he is .
forced to re-assess the situation. He eventually gains the help of a haughty, unkempt rogue hunter .
from America. Remington (Michael Douglas) is an ex-confederate soldier who has lived in Africa .
and gained a reputation as an expert hunter. At first there is a clash of personalities, but the two .
quickly begin to work together. After several hunts and numerous close calls, they manage to .
defeat the lions and become the heroes of the workers. .
.
The creators of this film, namely writer William Goldman, most likely set out with a most .
innocent enthusiasm. The idea to bring this film to the screen came to Goldman while on a trip to .
Africa in 1984. He was inspired by the fact that such an amazing story was in fact true. And .
after 12 years of writing and frustrated casting, he brought his interpretation to the world. It had .
all the makings of a grand action adventure; a beautiful and wild landscape, dangerous beasts, and .
a brave hero to defeat them. Goldman's intentions were to tell this truly unbelievable story in a .
romantic and suspenseful way that would capture audiences" imaginations. And if the earnings .
are any indication, then he accomplished this goal. However, approaching this movie from .
another perspective requires looking past the striking and romantically uncompromising leading .
men-- right past them and into the dusty background, at the droves of African laborers.
