Gregory Peck leads an all-star cast in "The Snows of Kilimanjaro," a big 1952 film directed by Henry King and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck. With a cast that includes Ava Gardner, Susan Hayward, Hildegarde Neff and Leo J. Carroll, and a story based on a story by Ernest Hemingway, one expects something more - much more - than what is delivered by this plodding film.

Peck plays a writer with a severe leg infection. As he lays in Africa waiting for a transport while his wife (Hayward) cares for him, he believes he's dying. He goes over his past life and loves - a girl he disappoints in his youth, then Cynthia (Gardner) the love of his life, followed by Neff, and Hayward, whom he mistakes for Cynthia when he first meets her.

Henry King mixes some beautiful scenery with stock footage of Africa. Since it's Hemingway, the movie has a macho sensibility - a lot of hunting, drinking, implied sex, and a bullfight. It's only in the last couple of scenes that the film's energy picks up - but by then, it's too late. The performances are okay - strangely, Gardner's character seems the most fleshed out. That isn't saying much - one gets the impression a lot was cut, leaving holes in characterizations and the viewer completely detached from them. Altogether, a disappointing experience.

The Snows of Kilimanjaro gives Gregory Peck a privilege afforded only Gary Cooper previously, a second chance to be an Ernest Hemingway hero in a film. Just as Cooper had done A Farewell to Arms and For Whom the Bell Tolls, Peck had previously starred in The Macomber Affair.

This was also his second film with both Susan Hayward and Ava Gardner. It's a pity that the film did not call for the two of them to be sharing any scenes, that would have made it a better film.

Peck is novelist Harry Street, a man modeled by Ernest Hemingway on the character of Ernest Hemingway. Or at least some of the less attractive aspects of him. He's at a safari camp at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro in Kenya and slowly dying of blood poisoning while his second wife, Susan Hayward attends him and awaits for a plane that can do a medical evacuation, hopefully in time.

Hayward knows that she's always come up second best in Peck's eyes to his first wife Ava Gardner. In his feverish delirium Peck's mind starts wandering back over his life and especially to his early days in Paris as part of Hemingway's lost generation. And the relationship with his first wife.

The problem I find with this film is that Peck's character is so self involved that I can't see why these two beautiful women are falling all over for him. Maybe that's an occupational hazard with authors or artists of any kind, but it prevents The Snows of Kilimanjaro from being a first rate film or first rate Hemingway.

Nevertheless the stars are just fine in their parts and another part you should look for is that of Leo G. Carroll who is Peck's uncle and mentor. It's a kinder, gentler version of Elliott Templeton from The Razor's Edge. For that reason I'm sure it must have been offered to Clifton Webb.

There are some gorgeous sets and terrific color cinematography and not surprising that The Snows of Kilimanjaro was nominated for Oscars in both categories.

If you want to see Gregory Peck as a Hemingway hero, check out The Macomber Affair before this one. And if you want to see Ava Gardner as a Hemingway heroine, check out The Sun Also Rises. As for Susan, this was her one and only shot with Papa.

Writer Harry Street (Gregory Peck) lies injured with an infected wound on his leg in the shadow of Mount Kilamanjaro. He awaits for help with his wife Helen (Susan Hayward) by his side as he recalls his past failings and his first love Cynthia Green (Ava Gardner).

This was nominated for Best Cinematography for that year. Certainly the widelife filming looks great. With the great actors involved, I had hoped for better. Peck and Hayward have a tough time establishing chemistry. They are in Africa with Peck dying. He's an angry drunk much in keeping with the Ernest Hemingway type character. It's a little bit against type of his usual nice guy persona. They fight more than they show affection. Peck and Hayward's story all happened in the past. All of it moves very slowly. The movie is very static and stiff. It's lucky for the movie that the characters are played by such giant stars. If they shone less brightly, this would truly be not worthwhile at all. As it is, it's nice to see these 3 stars in one movie no matter how good or bad it is.