Reviewer: nancyn

Passage des Hommes Libres is a movie based on the real-life experiences of two scientific explorers, Alexander Von Humbolt and Aimé Bonpland. The movie centers on the time they spent exploring South America, from 1799-1804.

The movie opens with the scene of Aimé's(Roy Dupuis) funeral in South America, and Alexander's (Christian Vadim) reaction to the news from his apartment in Paris. He begins to reminisce about Aime and the time he spent with his friend.

Alexander is a geologist from Prussia and Aimé is a French botanist. The King of Spain has allowed them to explore the Spanish colonies in South America. Alexander and Aimé land at the island of Caracas, where they meet a schoolteacher, Pedro, who becomes their guide and teaches them about his native land. Over the course of their stay Aimé and Alexander learn about the region and catalogue their discoveries in botany, zoology, geology, geography, and cosmology for a European audience.

What this movie does very well is show the sensibilities of the Age of Enlightenment. The historical context of this movie is excellently portrayed. Aimé and Alexander are freethinking scientists, ready to explore lands and revel in the acquisition of new knowledge. They are the products of the French Revolution, believers in the Declaration of the Rights of Man, and embrace Thomas Paine’s view of "science as the true theology." Alexander and Aimé are liberated from the constraints of "civilization" and begin to see the New World open up to them. They find a wealth of natural phenomena: earthquakes, shooting stars, eclipses, mosquitoes. But the film also delves into the discoveries they make towards a deeper understanding of humanity, and witnessing cruelty and compassion in the colony gives them a deeper sense of the brotherhood they share with all men.

Alexander's personality exemplifies the scientific pursuit of the age: he is cautious, methodical, restrained, and, above all, the observer and scribe. Aimé, on the other hand, is the joy and free spirit of the age. His name means "Beloved" in French. He is the one who exults in nature, the outdoors, and has passionate affairs with the Spanish women in Caracas.

Alexander's self-discovery relates to his burgeoning homosexuality and his pursuit of Aimé. The interplay between their camaraderie and Alexander's sexual pursuit of Aimé is well balanced in this film. They remain friends by Aimé never going down the path that Alexander cautiously tries to lead him. The scene in the lake when Alexander tries to tell Aimé about his past and of his feelings exemplifies this interplay, with Aimé skirting away from Alexander, in the water as well as in the conversation.

Being so true to the spirit of their age does not endear them to everyone, however. This movie also does an excellent job of showing the two Spanish forces in the Latin American colonies at that time: church and state. The Catholic Church is busy in the region, trying to "civilize" the natives by spreading Christianity. The Spanish military is there to guard the borders and to find mineral deposits for increasing Spain's coffers. Aimé and Alexander attend a party welcoming them to Caracas where dignitaries from both the Catholic Church and Spanish military attend. The Spanish officers are wary of Aimé's recital of "Liberty" at the piano, for singing of liberty in a Spanish colony doesn’t go over too well with the Spanish officers of the King. The cardinal is seen to be just as wary of scientists who believe in applying the scientific method to all the mysteries of the universe, including head lice :P.

Aimé and Alexander’s expedition into the jungle is a microcosm of the colonized world. They take along Padre Zeo, a priest in the Catholic Church; Rivera, a Spanish commander in the military; Pedro, the educated "half-breed" (as Rivera refers to him); and two Indian paddlers. Although Padre Zeo is against mistreatment of the natives, he cannot stop the carnage and looting ordered by the Spanish commander. Alexander and Aimé become more and more disillusioned after witnessing the "civilizing" of the natives, but the whole colonization process is what enables the explorers to be there in the first place. Their freedom to pursue new discoveries is at the expense of the native people whose territory has been taken away by the King of Spain.

Roy Dupuis does a fantastic job with his character in this film. Being of a lighthearted nature, Aimé's main antagonists in the story are the mosquitoes that make life unbearable by their constant biting. Aimé is unable to sleep during the expedition due to the nasty beasts, and has a hilarious hissy fit on screen. He buries himself in dirt to escape, only to find himself covered in creepy-crawlies instead. Realizing the natives are being ignored by the mosquitoes, he follows their example and covers himself in the orange sap that serves as a natural repellent. He then adopts the dress of the natives, much to surprise of his fellow Europeans. We see his growth as he embraces more and more of the culture around him. His pompous affectation while singing "Liberty" (which also totally cracks me up) in his Brutus crop and formal evening attire in the beginning of the film is in direct juxtaposition with the Aimé we see towards the end—grinning widely, hair wild, covered in orange goo, and dressed in a loin cloth. He serves as a perfect accompaniment to Alexander, who would stay removed and observe from afar without Aimé to pull him into the experiences like the birth of the baby or swimming in the lake. And for those of you who watch for Royalicious scenes, this movie has got them :).

Aire Libre is somewhat dark, but it does maintain an element of humor throughout and gives a great sense of the camaraderie and brotherhood among Aimé, Alexander, and Pedro. I am not sure how accurate the film is compared to the actual lives of Aimé and Alexander, but the "feel" was so akin to that century that it gave the film a very realistic quality. This movie did inspire me to find out more about the real-life experiences of the Alexander and Aimé. One disappointment to me was the movie logically incurred that that trip was the total of their adventures together. I discovered later that they went back to France together and worked for Napoleon. Humbolt obtained a scientific position and Aimé took care of the Empress Josephine’s gardens at Malmaison. Though Alexander wanted to work with Aimé on his documentation of their trip, Aimé was more interested in hands-on research and being outdoors than the documentation of their work together. This is the most likely reason why Alexander Von Humbolt is more widely known and more highly regarded than Aimé: Alexander published. Aimé went back to South America when Napoleon was exiled and spent 16 years being unjustly imprisoned by a Paraguayan dictator.

There are some good pictures of Alexander's illustrations here (no orchids, though :P).

Note about the title: This movie was originally titled "Passage des Hombres Libres" and given the somewhat awkward English translation of "Out in the Open," which someone chose perhaps as a sly inference to Alexander's crush on Aimé :P. A more exact and appropriate translation of this would be "Journey of Free Men": the voyage of discovery for two scientists in an age when the whole world is new and open to exploration.