Reptileenbu
Did you people see the same film I saw?
Contentar
Best movie of this year hands down!
Kirandeep Yoder
The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.
jjnxn-1
Turgid, overlong epic has a story with possibilities-organized religion's arrogant assumption that what it believes is right even if it destroys a civilization. While it conveys that in many ways something is ultimately missing from the overall film that keeps the viewer at a distance making it less involving then it needs to be. Von Sydow is a fine actor but his Reverend Hale is such a pompous, small minded autocrat that spending over 2 1/2 hours with him is a trial. Julie Andrews is wasted, surely they could have found a way for her to sing more, although she does have one good scene near the end. The location filming is breath taking but that only will carry a film so far and this doesn't have enough else to make it worth seeking out.
mark.waltz
Breaking out of the mold of singing nannies, Julie Andrews plays a Bostonian socialite who marries a missionary (Max Von Sydow) and heads to the wilds of Hawaii where her husband works on converting the natives to Christianity. A ship's captain (Richard Harris) sets his sights on the lovely but fragile Andrews which tests the sanctity of marriage. Obsessed with converting what he believes to be a sinful life of the very sexual natives, Von Sydow neglects his wife, leading to tragedy and a climactic confrontation between Von Sydow and Harris. The fact that Harris would go on to play King Arthur in the film version of "Camelot" while Andrews was unable to reprise her role as Guenevere makes this an interesting pairing during this time.Beautiful to look at and superbly acted, this takes James Michener beyond the tales of the South Pacific and Bali Hai to what would later become America's 50th State. Andrews totally underplays her role here after flamboyantly playing Mary Poppins and Maria Von Trapp, so this is a nice change of pace for her. Von Sydow is a bit hammy in spots, but if you consider the type of character he is playing, that is not entirely out of place. The acting honors go to Jocelyn La Garde, the Hawaiian born native chosen to play the last Queen. Speaking her few English language lines phonetically, the hefty La Garde is lovable, touching and fierce. And yes, that is Carroll O'Connor, the future Archie Bunker here, playing Andrews' father.This also contains one of the most beautiful music scores (by Elmer Bernstein) to grace an epic film of the 1960's, one you'll not soon forget. While some of the historical references have been questioned in regards to their accuracy, the film paints a realistic portrayal of the hardships faced by mainland Americans as they face the elements of a land they can never quite understand. This is the type of film that should be given occasional big screen re-releases so today's audiences can see how epics used to be made without resulting in headaches due to overpowering sound and computer generated effects.
bkoganbing
From the day Captain Cook arrived on those beautiful islands, Hawaii like Poland was cursed because of geography. Poland situated between two gigantic European powers just became a pawn in the eternal military and diplomatic chess game.Hawaii located where it is between North America and the Orient, when sea travel improved it was only a matter of time before the big powers came a-callin'. And they came from both directions. Not shown in the time frame this film covers, but soon after, waves of Japanese and Chinese immigrants landed on the shore. Hawaii was coveted by all and America got it.Max Von Sydow plays a young New England minister out to bring the gospel to the heathen as he sees them and has been taught to see them. His church won't send him out to the south seas without a wife, lest he be tempted by sins of the flesh, so on a short acquaintance he marries Julie Andrews. She in turn has been home pining away for whaling captain Richard Harris. When Von Sydow and Andrews get to Hawaii over the course of their story Harris would reappear.Naturally its quite a culture shock for the New Englanders when they get to Hawaii. The film's story covers about a quarter of a century of Hawaiian history and the history of the changing attitudes of Andrews and Von Sydow. James Michener's original novel was of War and Peace duration and I suppose the final script was as best they could get it and cover what he was trying to convey. Despite the obvious racist feelings that Von Sydow has, he's a basically decent man who does do some positive good.His problem is that everything with him has to be filtered through the Bible. There's a lot of incest going on in Hawaii when he lands there. Reason being is that these are islands with a limited number of mating partners. Now incest is bad as we know because it does eventually weaken the gene pool. But Von Sydow hardly takes a scientific approach, how could he, he doesn't know it, he hasn't been taught it.Julie Andrews is a far cry from the perky Mary Poppins. She develops quite an attachment to Hawaii and its people and her approach with them is fundamentally different than her husband's. It's not a bad performance.Richard Harris is the lusty whaling captain of Andrews previous affections. I tend to think his part might have been edited down. In a recent biography of Harris, it was stated he and Andrews did not get along at all on the set. Harris in those days was a whole lot like the characters he played like this one in Hawaii.Of course when you've got Hawaii as a subject for a camera, the photography could not be anything but gorgeous.Hawaii covers a period not well known to most Americans except Hawaiians. And indeed they are Americans and have been since 1959. I think people could learn something from this film even with the script flaws.
kolemani-1
I first noticed what were definitely Polynesian actors on the cover of the DVD and considering it was a movie based on a subject matter I'm always interested in(when Europeans interfere with Native peoples,in particular Polynesians since I am one,and the effects the clash of cultures can have).I was a little unsure of the movie at first because I was thinking it was gonna be real preachy but I found it to be an awesome film,even it it did have some cuts(as I just read another post here).I am very impressed with the acting from all the cast and especially the performances given from Keoki and especially Ali'i Nui.She did a really good job especially considering this was her first and only movie.I couldn't see a movie like this being made today(esp since there wouldn't nearly be as many real Hawaiians available for extras or actors) and in my opinion there was a good balance of many perosectives in this film.It can get your mind racing.I myself have part Native Hawaiian blood and am always looking to find out more about my culture.I hope that people re-discovering or discovering this movie for the first time realize the struggles of Native Hawaiian people and trying to keep and in some cases find their own identity after being taken over by outside forces that still exist to this day.These problems are nothing new and at the same time have trouble getting old.I hope people will come away wanting to know a little more about the US' 50th "state" and find that it is more than a great tourist destination and that it is not just some place on a postcard.Well thats all and I enjoyed the acting,direction,dedication and even the great shots that were put into this film.Hawaiian's are still a dying race(fewer aborignal Hawaiians now) but there are many proud Natives(in the blood) and local Hawaiians(in spirit) that are still fighting to hold onto the culture and some of our traditions.My hats off to these people.peace
