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randall 
"I like to watch."
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 Posted - 04/30/2008 : 02:48:57
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This majestic Chinese/German/Australian co-production recounts the professional life of an English journalist [Jonathan Rhys Meyers] who travels to China in the Thirties, when the country is under fierce attack from Japan, both from the air and on the ground. Through the offices of a rebellious national [Chow Yun Fat], he makes his way to a ramshackle "orphanage" where sixty young victims of the war live in squalor, tended occasionally by an American nurse [Radha Mitchell]. The ensuing story is thoroughly dazzling, enhanced by the breathtaking Chinese countryside, for this is where most of the film was shot [some interiors were done in Melbourne].
Roger Spottiswoode is best known, at least in the U.S., for directing TOMORROW NEVER DIES [Michelle Yeoh has a delicious role in this film too], and things blow up real good when they have to, but his directorial dial is set on the individual, the human aspect. Great performances from the Chinese youth ensemble. Impressive scenic backdrops. A heart-tugging story of humanity enduring, prevailing, in the face of war. See it! |
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The Children Of Huang Shi
