XoWizIama Excellent adaptation.

Spoonatects Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Taraparain Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

Gordon-11 This film tells the life of the revered and brave politician who keeps on fighting for her people.It is not easy to condense years of events in a two hour film, but "The Lady" successfully carries the gist of what happened in Ang Sang Suu Kyi's fight for her country. Born as the daughter of the general who founded the country, she was in a uniquely privileged position to bring about change. Her remarkable bravery was well portrayed, such as standing up against dozens of soldiers with machine guns. Her enormous dedication to her people is so touching, and the film touched me deeply in the last half hour. Not only that, the inclusion of ethnic minorities in the film also deserves praise, even though it might have just been added for cinematic effect. I think the director did a great job in creating this film, successfully showing how Ang Sang Suu Kyi has transcendental love for her country.

gradyharp Despite the flaws in this dramatized biopic of Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi - far too long at 132 minutes, more emphasis on a family drama than an important change in Burma to Myanmar, etc - this film as written by Rebecca Frayn and directed by Luc Beeson (Taken, Transporter, La Femme Nikita, etc) deserves our attention in that it helps explain the volatile situation that existed in Burma from 1947 to the present. In brief it is the story of Aung San Suu Kyi as she becomes the core of Burma's democracy movement, and her relationship with her husband, Oxford professor and writer Michael Aris.Opening in 1947 we meet Aung San Suu Kyi as a child bidding farewell to her father, General Aung San, a hero of the Burmese democratic movement, who is then assassinated. Aung San Suu Kyi (Michelle Leoh) escapes to England, matures, marries an Oxford professor Michael (David Thewlis) and has two sons (Jonathan Raggett and Jonathan Woodhouse). The film then jumps to 1988 when, due to the fact that her mother is critically ill, Suu Kyi returns to Burma to care for her mother; once there she observes the student protests to the military regime headed by a dummy superstitious dictator, and as the heir to her father's fame in the country as a leader of the people she decides to stay and follow the encouragement of the protesters to be their leader. That decision places here in danger and eventual house arrest, and with the love of her husband and children as support she stays the course and becomes the leader of the democratic movement of the country now called Myanmar. The commitment to her cause by her husband (who discovers in Suu Kyi's absence that he has prostate cancer and a limited life span) offers her strength and she gains world attention when she is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991.THE LADY is more an epic love story about how an extraordinary couple and family sacrifice their happiness at great human cost for a higher cause than it is a full study of the persona of Aung San Suu Kyi Much is missing, especially the period in Burma from 1947 to 1988, and the maturing of Suu Kyi into a hero. But the film does emphasize the peaceful quest of the woman who is at the core of Burma's democracy movement and the indomitable love relationship and strength of marriage and family due to their undying support of her mission. Michelle Yeoh and David Thewlis are excellent and the film has touches of beauty that are memorable (as Suu Kyi listens on a portable radio to the Nobel Prize speech read by her son the music that is so much a part of Suu Kyi's life is her playing of the Pachelbel Canon accompanied by a small orchestra over a distance of thousands of miles). It is a touching tribute to a great lady of peace. Grady Hap

DICK STEEL Based on the story by Rebecca Frayn, who had spent three years interviewing close confidantes of Aung San Suu Kyi, the narrative provides the points of view of both Suu Kyi herself, played by Michelle Yeoh, and her husband Michael Aris (David Thewlis), who because of her political awakening and development, caused plenty of emotionally painful, physical separation and time spent apart through her standing up for and accepting her countrymen's push for democratic leadership, after years of military rule from generalissimos Ne Win to Tan Shwe (Agga Poechit). It also presents different perspectives both within and outside of Burma as crises began to unfold with Suu Kyi a prisoner of her own home and country, and Michael being outside of it trying his best to sound out her, and Burma's plight. Then there's the sacrifice of family for country, where a breakup of the family unit was something inevitable in order to continue being there for her countrymen and not abandoning them at times of need.In a story spanning decades that moves forward and back in time, Besson has a solid hand in knowing the highlights of the many years history to translate for the big screen, going back to the 40s when Suu Kyi's father Aung San, a war and independence hero, got assassinated, right down to her emergence in politics as a force to be reckoned with, and her subsequent house arrest, right up to the recent 2007 rallies and demonstrations by monks that eventually led to a deadly crackdown. The Lady presents Besson an opportunity to move away from his relatively family friendly fare of late with the Arthur and the Invisibles series, and also to perform an about turn from the usual action flicks, for something a lot more serious in gravitas, and needless to say the importance of getting the film right in most, if not all counts, as much as a filmmaker can with the resources at his disposal.As such, some may feel that the film is relatively lightweight in its coverage of politics, although I must add that being confined to one's home in the prominent years of one's political life doesn't make for a smooth translation on screen, as there's only so much that one can do within the fantastic recreation of Suu Kyi's lakeside home. Instead a softer, more heartfelt approach through a love story opened up Suu Kyi as a character who's a lot more down to earth, than just a democracy icon. Besson's knack for handling strong female characters couldn't be more pronounced here, with plenty of opportunities in scenes to show she does not cower even with gun barrels pointed at her face, nor accept the constant nonsense dished out by the military might.Despite the lack of action, you can feel Luc Besson's release of glee in channeling that frustration to mocking the military top brass, from their deliberate big moments and silly gestures bordering on the comical, to their illogical superstitions, with characterization being very much in line with our esteemed ex Minister Mentor's comments in WikiLeaks. Almost all generalissimos and their underlings are ridiculously decorated, and make extremely naive calls as if nobody can see through their simple rouse. It's a story of grace versus guns, which in any other typical Besson movie it's no surprise if it comes with preference for the latter, except for The Lady which trades in for the softer power approach. Michelle Yeoh lost quite a lot of weight in order to physically resemble the lead role, and her time spent on researching Suu Kyi was time well spent as she nailed her mimicry down to a pat. Even her lines spoken in Burmese were flawless. Not that I can understand the language, but the large percentage of Burmese audience that I've watched this with were nodding and acknowledging her diction and fluency, as well as her performance of the real life heroine of their lives. In short, they were in awe by her elegance and poise in making Suu Kyi come alive on screen. David Thewlis also shone in his role as the husband standing firmly behind her decision and to make sacrifices knowingly for the greater good, for the benefit of even more people in a country that needs his wife more than he needs her. Together they made their struggle felt, and will seek to move even the most stoic of hearts. And the actors who played the Burmese generals, you guys surely hammed it up effortlessly.This superb film may be travelling the festival and commercial theatrical circuits now, and will probably pick up a slew of film awards along the way. But what's more important and I'm sure it'll achieve, is to bring the attention of the world towards Suu Kyi's, and Burma's continued plight that seemed to be with no end in sight. You may not be very familiar with what may have transpired over the decades of strife in Burma, but The Lady brings you up to speed with a succinctly packed historical lesson centered around one of the world's enduring icons of freedom and democracy. A definite recommendation for this wonderful effort.

Harry T. Yung Since 1905, there have been 15 women Nobel Prize winners (three sharing in 2011). The loftiest stature has to be attributed to Mother Teresa. Aung San Suu Kyi, "The Lady" comes very close behind. Luc Besson, generally not exactly known for his modesty, intimated in an interview how humbled he was in his first meeting with her in her house in Burma, coming face to face with Goodness personified. Luc Besson is well known for his appetite to tackle ANY genre (from historical epic to outlandish science fiction, and everything in between), and he has well demonstrated his virtuosity and flare. Filming the story of such a living legend as Aung San Suu Kyi, however, he is somewhat subdued. This is understandable, because of the respect. Uncharacteristically restrained in his visuals, he wisely takes advantage of Eric Serra's excellent original score, to wonderful effects. As well, rather than focusing on heroism in political struggle, he leans more towards presenting a moving mature love story that elevates the word sacrifice to a new height. Absolutely everything hinges, however, on the titular role. Although not many people may know, Michelle Yeoh has long proved that there is much more to her than a premium Amazon, with "The Soong Sisters" (1997). It didn't take long for people trying to cast the role of Aung San Suu Kyi to unanimously agree that Yeoh was born for it. And she is proved them right, convincingly. Her job is exceptionally difficult when you compare it with a majority of successful bio pics in the last decade, where the protagonist is literally history (Ray Charles, Bobby Darin, Truman Capote, J. Edgar Hoover…). Aung San Suu Kyi is in every sense a living legend. People see her frequently in live coverage. The courage and determination is probably quite similar in all heroic figures. But the grace and elegance of "The Lady", even under the acutest of pressures, is unique. Yeoh's portrayal is absolutely flawless, putting her in the same class as Helen Mirren's Queen Elizabeth II and Morgan Freeman's Nelson Mandela. Yeoh's performance, however superb, would not shine as bright without the other half of this love story referred to earlier, or, as one critic aptly calls it, "a story of the man behind the woman". Cannes's Best Actor (1993) David Thewlis is with Yeoh every step of the way in portraying her "most indulgent husband" Michael Aris who does not just support unwaveringly his wife's dream of a free Burma (which would have been remarkable), but embraces it as his own. But there's not just the love between husband and wife, but also love in a happy family, including the two sons Alexander (Jonathan Woodhouse) and Kim (Jonathan Raggett). The most touch scene would have to be the father and two sons receiving the Nobel Prize for the mother who is held in house arrest in Burma - Aung San Suu Kyi listening on the radio to Alexander's acceptance speech on her behalf. That is when it become quite difficult to contain one's tears.