Review: I really enjoyed this emotional drama, and the fact that it's based on a true story, made the whole journey truly amazing. Its another one of those films were it needed some big names to play the main roles, because it needed someone who could have brought the intensity and emotion of the 1,000 kilometre track to the edge of the Mongolian desert. The little kids played there roles extremely well and the authenticity seemed extremely real and it was great to see Chow Yun-Fat (Jack) and Michelle Yeoh (Mrs. Wang) in the same film, even though they didn't have any scenes together. Jonathan Rhyl Meyers (George Hogg), put in a decent performance, alongside Radha Mitchell (Lee Pearson) but for a movie of this scale, it really needed someone who could push the boundaries, so you could feel how hard there journey really was. I did feel quite emotional when I saw the real kids, as grown ups, at the end but it did finish quite abruptly, which was slightly disappointing after watching these orphans travel so far. With that aside, I was still amazed with the story and the fact that these young children all pulled together to get to there destination. I'm glad that the director didn't delve into the whole love story element of the film because it would have taken away how important there journey really was. Anyway, I found this movie very entertaining, and it's part of Chinese history which needed to be brought out, into the open. Enjoyable!
Round-Up: This movie really did make a massive lose at the box office, which is a shame because it really didn't deserve it. I personally didn't know anything about the film when it was released, so the studio didn't really push the distribution, even though they invested so much money into the project. Although Jonathan Rhys Meyers, 38, has starred in some decent films like Michael Collins, Misson Impossible III and Alexander, I still think that this movie was a bit too big for him at this stage of his career. He's not one that usually takes the lead in big budget movies so I personally would have chosen a more established actor. The movie was directed by Roger Spottiswoode, 71, who has made a range of movies like the Best of Times, Deadly Pursuit, Turner & Hooch, Air America, the terrible Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot and Tomorrow Never Dies, and with 5 more movies in the pipeline, he's still going strong. I doubt that this film would damage his reputation, even though it made a heavy lose but I still think that this amazing story could be told with a A class cast and huge distribution.
Budget: $40million Worldwide Gross: $8million
I recommend this movie to people who are into their drama/war movie starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Radha Mitchell, Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh and David Wenham. 7/10
Round-Up: This movie really did make a massive lose at the box office, which is a shame because it really didn't deserve it. I personally didn't know anything about the film when it was released, so the studio didn't really push the distribution, even though they invested so much money into the project. Although Jonathan Rhys Meyers, 38, has starred in some decent films like Michael Collins, Misson Impossible III and Alexander, I still think that this movie was a bit too big for him at this stage of his career. He's not one that usually takes the lead in big budget movies so I personally would have chosen a more established actor. The movie was directed by Roger Spottiswoode, 71, who has made a range of movies like the Best of Times, Deadly Pursuit, Turner & Hooch, Air America, the terrible Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot and Tomorrow Never Dies, and with 5 more movies in the pipeline, he's still going strong. I doubt that this film would damage his reputation, even though it made a heavy lose but I still think that this amazing story could be told with a A class cast and huge distribution.
Budget: $40million Worldwide Gross: $8million
I recommend this movie to people who are into their drama/war movie starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Radha Mitchell, Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh and David Wenham. 7/10