saila-41726
Love this series that is so true to the expedition journals and photographs. Some of the scenes are exactly as the original pictures and films by Hurley. It so often happens that the story is twisted and dramatized a bit too much, but not here. Super!
Great performances and meticulous attention to detail is very much appreciated. The clothing is also true to the originals that the crew wore, and the men are even made to look very alike their characters. Our only critique is that at times the men seem far too clean and well-shaven. Also, they surely were not going about with their coats open and without gloves, were they...? However, at other times they seem very authentic.
I could easily watch a double long version and enjoy that very much. It seems that an epic, gripping journey was cut rather short at many places and the months of struggle on ice, and weeks at sea, were not reflected enough in the short seances. However, it is understandable that that would have been tedious for most spectators. For an Endurance-journey-aficionado no length is too much.
So; Top marks! I want to watch this again and again, a great great series.
Andy (film-critic)
This was not a great film. From the opening credit sequence to the ending miraculous shots, the film follows the obvious route of "made-for-TV" without cutting corners or taking shortcuts. For a little over three hours we watch as we are guided by Branagh and his group of unknowns through different sound stages, outdoor shots full of graininess, and classic wind machines put to great use. The story is weak, the acting was not a necessity for those producers at A&E, and outside of Shackleton, there is no defined voice of our other characters. Again, this not was a great film. Yet, somehow, I found myself glued, wide awake, and attentive through the entire adventure. Perhaps it was due to the fact that I knew nothing, prior to this film, about the man Earnest Shackleton or about his ill-fated expedition. Perhaps it was more the excitement of watching man versus Mother Nature or even seeing a new place that I had only seen on maps or other television program. I don't know what it was, but Shackleton kept me glued to my TV screen. There was no reason for me to enjoy this film, but alas, I did. Not due to the acting, not the story, and definitely not the visuals, but mainly due to the historical element. I enjoyed watching, as morbid as this sounds, how painful and uncontrollable Mother Nature can be and how it combats the strength of men. This impressed me more than anything that escaped Branagh's mouth did.To begin, this was a difficult film to watch. After seeing Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou several times, I had trouble separating Bill Murray the explorer and Kenneth Branagh the explore, which are two completely different characters. Maybe I watched in hopes that Willem Dafoe would arrive to bring some humor to this crew, but alas, it never happened. Nonetheless, Branagh did a decent job as the hard-nosed Brit that felt more desire to save his crew than finish the expedition. Oddly enough, Branagh is one of the only actors that can steal three-plus hours of my life and I really don't mind. Other actors, I have some trouble with, but Branagh seems to deliver, even at his worst, a character that is easy on the eyes. Shackleton was not his best, but I followed him because I was compelled to see where he would take me. Is that a sign of a good actor or a good director? I don't know because I wasn't happy with the direction that Charles Sturridge took during this adventure. For the first hour-plus we are privy to brief moments of Shackleton's private life and his ability to sell his dreams, but that is not what this film is all about. This film is about the dangers and dedication that these men had to staying alive. I would have wished that Sturridge had dedicated more time towards the perils and less towards the underdevelopment of the characters. Sturridge placed so much emphasis on the characters, that by the end of the film you didn't really know any of them except for Shackleton, yet we needed more development to heighten the emotion at the end. Branagh brought himself decently to the screen, but it is in my opinion that Sturridge did not craft together a strong enough story.This viewer also had trouble with the overall British environment that Sturridge created. I realize that Shackleton was a British man, but in this film it felt as if he glazed it on rather heavily. Whenever there was trouble for these men, you could undoubtedly expect our characters to yell "bloody" about something. While it was fun at first, I just felt like Sturridge was pushing it in my face. Maybe it wasn't such a big deal, but I seemed to notice it quite a bit more as the temperature continued to drop. Coupled with the language was the poor set design. I shouldn't say poor, but rather inconsistent. In the beginning, there was some excitement "traveling" to these different wealthy homes (which were the same but with different items inside), but when we got to the Antarctic, there wasn't much to speak about. I felt as if we were walking over the same sets over and over again, but just moving the iceberg in a different location. The funniest and most deplorable moment, was when Shackleton and his small crew fought the storm on the sea. I couldn't tell what was happening, but thanks to the graininess, I didn't have to. E-gad, I thought A&E had more money than this!Overall, I cannot harshly critique this film because I did watch all three hours of it without a single flinch of sleep, but I cannot give credit to the acting, the characters, the direction, the set design, or the story. What I loved about this film was the human element. The power of endurance, which ironically was the name of his sinking boat (symbolism … oh, I think so!), kept me captured to the screen. I would not recommend this film to friends because of the lengthiness to get to the finale (it is almost like going on your own Shackleton adventure), but I cannot knock it. If you can get past the poor production value of this film and see the power of the historical and Mother Nature element, than I think you will like it. For me, I must go watch Life Aquatic one more time to get a true "explorer" spirit into my mind!Grade: *** out of *****
wombat_1
The commentaries here are very good. Philby-3, whoever he/she is, has a particularly complete and accurate summary. Since I go out of my way not to be a me-too, I will make only two points, because no-one else has made them. I wonder why not?1. Particularly poignant for me were the few seconds that showed Shackleton's grave, in the Antarctic, where he willed it to be. Did you all miss this?2. If you have not yet seen this 4-hour effort and are reading these comments because you think you might want to, then I would IMPLORE you to FIRST see the Imax "summary" version of this, the one called "Shackleton's Antarctic Adventure". The Imax version, at least the modern parts of it, is much more effective in actually "putting" one into Antarctica, in seeing the subtle colours, the huge scale and the savage beauty of the place. This film, by comparison, is totally focussed on the human aspects of the story.
foolishewe
This is an true story and Epic Tale. I've been waiting for years for someone to step up and make a good movie about this. Surprisingly this movie was both extremely well done and made for TV. If this story had not been a matter of fact, it would seem unrealistic that anyone could have survived such hardships.Branagh actually looks a bit like Shackleton (at least in the limited footage I saw). I cannot speak for entire historical accuracy, but we see a man of amazing courage and compassion for his crew (an earlier attempt at the Pole was aborted to avoid killing his men). As a researcher, I also found the grant getting exercises and search for support interesting.I also enjoyed very much the portrayal of the crew, the supporting cast performed quite well. The special effects were also good. Many details from Shackleton's book were omitted (because he described things like hunger for starchy food). However, the show was in a two parts, and most of the heroic stuff happens in the second part.So, I gave this a 9 out of 10 (well told classic story) with only minor deductions for some slowness in the first part.
