The African Queen: An Analysis

Katherine Hepburn’s Rose Sayer shows us the original female action hero as she journeys down a wild and dangerous river to carry out her mission for God and country. In a classic pairing with Humphrey Bogart as Charlie Allnut, the two are challenged by inter-relational struggles, natural elements and the formidable foe of a German gunboat. But, on top of its carefull interweaving of distinct romance and adventure stories, the film manages to describe a spiritual journey as well.

Screentakes screenbooks offer screenplay analysis of time-tested great films in an innovative learning experience that uses text, photos, video, audio and interactive graphics. Unlike the “enhanced ebook,” in which the media elements are supplemental to the text, in our screenbooks the reader engages with the media as an integral part of the narrative flow. They are reading experiences designed for the screen.

Our first two screenbooks analyze the story structure of The African Queen and Thelma & Louise. We are currently working on our third ebook analyzing Kramer vs. Kramer. Future ebooks will cover titles such as Traffic, The Crying Game, Chinatown, Pulp Fiction, Fargo, Double Indemnity and Sunset Boulevard. For more information, visit www.screentakes.com.