Smartorhypo Highly Overrated But Still Good

Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

Ezmae Chang This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Francene Odetta It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

tommytune79 This is a beautiful, thoughtful, heart-wrenching story. The cinematography of the film is artful and intimate, it feels like you are in the room, almost shamefully eavesdropping... the ending doesn't completely gel for me, the story line works, but I think it needs to be fleshed out a bit more. The ensemble performances are letter perfect, the subtleties and inner thoughts of these characters are crystal clear to the viewer, it's almost unnerving. The frantic energy of wartime life is captured beautifully, without being a trite war movie. It's just another layer of these characters reality, it doesn't overwhelm the story. Brandon Lee is beautiful in this role, very impressive performance. Great great story, I loved this movie!!!!

jtt2007 I absolutely adore this film and was overjoyed when it eventually became available on DVD. But was rather disappointed that they have never released a directors cut, I remember when it first came out there was a 4-5 hour version show at the Venice or Berlin film festival, I still have the cutting of a review from the screening and the writer was totally blown away by it and commented that it deserved to be released uncut. But back then as we know now people weren't prepared to sit in a cinema for that long, but now with the advent of DVD and everyone basically wanting a cinema at home with large plasma and 5.1 sound, its great that you are now getting the choice to see these gems as they were originally envisioned, its a real shame as i personally feel that this was a highlight of everyone involved in this movie, and is wards best movie, you also can tell when watching it that there is a lot of stuff missing, especially in the cuts from scene to scene. I don't think that a couple of deleted scenes was enough on the DVD, and the score is totally amazing,why no isolated track, try and get a hold of it if you can, it took me nearly 11 years to get my hands on it, eventually gave up hope of ever finding it and by pure chance found it in a second hand store in a tiny village called Comrie in Scotland, it was fate i think,paid 10p for it on cd, its by Gabriel Yared and is amazing.Anyway buy it on DVD its worth it and i cant ever see them releasing it uncut unfortunately, unless they ever release a vincent ward box set, now that would be worth buying. Anyone know of any other version available then please post comment.

zpzjones This is a beautifully done story that begins about 1931. It focuses on the relationship between an Inuit boy 'Avik' and a girl of mixed Indian/French ancestry 'Albertine'. We first meet them in a hospital cum boarding school in Montreal. Avik, tubercular & in need of medication, had been brought there by a cartographer/flyer, who befriended him, named Russell. Russell is played by Patrick Bergin. Young Avik & Albertine start off on the wrong foot with each other, fighting and bickering, but soon discover they have a liking for one another. ONe of the nuns at the school is played by the great Jeanne Moreau who disciplines both children and sets Albertine straight about using that bit of her 'white' heritage to make a better life for herself in the world.Time and years pass and both children have been separated and re-meet as young adults during WW2. Avik(Jason S Lee) leaves his Inuit village and becomes a bombardier on a Royal Air Force Bomber. He is so good at it that he is very well respected by his peers. Nevertheless his Eskimo heritage fits right in into the all-white squadron and the different cultures are not discussed at this point in the film. It's during respite from one of his missions that Avik learns that Albertine(Anne Parillaud from Le Femme Nikita) is in England and also is in uniform for the war effort. She works in the office of Avik's old cartographer friend Russell. Russell & Albertine are now an on again off again item. When Avik starts seeing Albertine they become an item and consummate their relationship one misty afternoon by having sex on top of a weather balloon. For the rest of the film we see some of the most explicit recreations of the bombings on Dresden Germany ever put on film. They are horrific and Avik and his fellow fliers count down the missions until they have fulfilled their quota and can go home.After the war the story wraps up in about 1965 and Avik now middle aged and gray haired has been living back in his Inuit community. He has been telling his life's story to a young man in a bar played by John Cusack. The young man seems to be another cartographer just like Russell some 30 years before. A young woman comes into the community and starts asking for Avik. She meets him a while and then leaves. Avik later discovers the girl is his now grown daughter with Albertine. A daughter most likely conceived on that blimp as well as a daughter he has never known. She's getting married and had sought him out to invite him to her wedding. When he learns that Albertine is going to be there he gets eager about attending and snowmobiles his way to her wedding only to die in a ice crevice.Wonderful bittersweet story. Avik's and Albertine's relationship is not explained after WW2. That's the only hole in the story IMHO. But Jason Lee & Anne Parillaud make their relationship work. Very good movie.

Jeff Blanco I had to drive 38 miles to see it..But it was fantastic. I'm usually a "guy Movie" person, but this film moved me so profoundly. The ending was extremely sad. A beautiful movie anyone would enjoy.