Film Reviews by DA

Wow! This is a portrayal of racism fuelled by stress and ignorance and anger. There is a large cast of characters (and you need to watch it twice to realise all the little details) and an intricate plot. In almost every character story arc both good and bad was displayed; some of the worst characters found redemption. There were some wonderful moments and some moments when I dreaded what was coming next. Every aspect of humanity seemed to be on display. And the interweaving of the stories kept me on the edge all of the time.

Superb acting by almost every member of the cast means that this is a film well deserving its Oscar.

As one of the other reviewers said, you have to like the music. I didn't. And there are a lot of songs, mostly sung all the way through accompanied with pictures of the musicians playing them. Apart from that, not a lot happened. There was little conflict to drive the story. It was very realistic, like most of real life, but not very exciting. The actors were excellent but frankly I was bored.

Yes it was often predictable: the two main story lines went where they were going from the start. It was a bit too black and white; the protagonist was wonderful in every way while every single government official was either impotent or a stormtrooping clone spouting newspeak. Most people who work in these jobs do their best to serve their clients; when people are ejected from benefit offices it is often because of the very real threat of violence.

But once you accepted the story as a fable it was brilliantly acted and directed. It hit hard. It made me weep. And it shows that a good story and good actors can beat any megabudget monstermovie sinking beneath its special effects.

Extraordinarily faithful to the book (and consequently perhaps a bit too long) this film was beautifully acted and beautifully filmed. A lighthouse keeper and his wife find a baby washed up in a boat on the shore; a dead man is also in the boat. Given a man who has always done his duty in the methodical stiff upper lip fashion of colonial servants of the Empire and a fun loving woman whose three brothers have been filled in the Great War this gift presents a dilemma. This movie chronicles their decision and its consequences.

OK so I cried in the end.