Softwing Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

Ploydsge just watch it!

ChicDragon It's a mild crowd pleaser for people who are exhausted by blockbusters.

Cristal The movie really just wants to entertain people.

TxMike I found this movie on Netflix streaming movies. It really is a fine one, an epic of sorts inspired by real events in the early 1990s on Bougainville Island off the coast of Papua New Guinea. That island was at one time the largest source of mined copper, and a civil war shut it down and threatened the existence of the islanders.Hugh Laurie is the lead actor as Mr. Watts, the lone remaining white face in this community of very dark-skinned people. He stayed for his "wife" Grace who was one of the natives. (We later find out he had a wife back in London but left her to be with Grace, whom he got to know in London.) So with the islanders stranded and no school, Mr Watts decides he will try to fill the void. On his first day he quickly admits that he is not a teacher, he has no actual teaching skills, but he would use Charles Dickens as his muse, and "Great Expectations" as a teaching tool.One of his students is 12-yr-old Xzannjah Matsi as Matilda. Her dad had left to go to Australia for work a few years ago, leaving her and her mother waiting for an opportunity that never came to join him. Her mother is played by Healesville Joel as Dolores, who in real life actually is her mother.It is worth noting here that aside from Lawrie, most of the characters on the island are played by first-timers who had no prior acting experience. I can't say enough about Xzannjah, she has a face that seems to be carved out of Ebony, flawless features, and her natural acting style makes her ultimately believable. The story is an epic one, and ends when Matilda has gotten off the island, and actually gets a chance to visit the historic home of Charles Dickens.

Andres Salama This New Zealand production, directed by Andrew Adamson (of Shrek fame) is based on a critically acclaimed book, which I have not read, that apparently takes place on an unnamed island in the Pacific. The filmmakers decided to set the story on the island of Bougainville, which is part of the independent country of Papua New Guinea.There is a war raging, and a hostile military harass the villagers believing they are sheltering the rebels. As this goes on, a young girl becomes fascinated by the Charles Dickens novel Great Expectations, which is being read at school by the teacher (Hugh Laurie), the only white man in the village. The causes of the war are never explained in the movie, though a quick internet search tells it involves rebels who want Bougainville to become independent of Papua (happily the war seems to have ended now, with Bougainville becoming an autonomous region). As for the movie, the constant references to Great Expectations didn't do too much for me (and I did read the Dickens' classic, though as a child, so I don't remember it very much). I was more interested in the movie almost ethnographic side, showing the daily lives of the people there with their traditional lifestyle in the midst of a very beautiful place. The movie never convincingly explains why the teacher is there, or why he feels is better to teach them Western literature than practical skills (and frankly, for what it is shown in the movie, he's not much of a teacher). If you come to think of it, the movie is a bit condescending, as it has a Western man teaching the natives how to feel, think, all in the village end up looking up to him, etc.Laurie is lost in the role, but the native actors are very good, especially Xzannjah Matsi as the girl Matilda. The best performance, however, is by the actor playing the evil officer in charge of the Papuan troops (from reading the final credits, I believe his name is David Kaumara). With some unbelievable plot turns, this film is not perfect, but very intriguing and very much well worth watching.

pajevich I really enjoyed watching this movie, and I got much more than I expected. This movie shows universality of the world, despite cultural differences. It shows sorrow and joy, the good and bad in people. Hugh Laurie is truly a magnificent actor, who very well portrayed mysterious man yet full of sorrow. It shows how life is unpredictable, how life is simultaneousness of good and bad things. When I finished watching this movie I remembered the famous quote "there is no saint without a past, no sinner without a future". If you decide to watch this movie you'll enjoy the wonderful scenes filmed in Papua New Guinea and New Zealend, wonderful acting by Hugh Laurie and Xzannjah Matsi, story about life how it really is. This movie was filmed two years ago and it is still relatively unknown. I hope this will change because this is a movie that everyone should see. This is maybe not a movie for Oscars (not that it's not better than many movies that had won best picture), but you will enjoy watching it, you'll feel sad at the moments, but you will think about it later on.

rainworx A great film...I thought Xzannjah Matsi, Healesville Joel and Hugh Laurie were amazing in this story set on Bougainville Island, part of the Solomon Islands, in Papua New Guinea. This film was a little brutal at times and unfortunately, demonstrates the heartless soul in some on this earth but a movie definitely worth the time and worth watching! Bougainville Island is a beautiful setting for this film where Hugh Laurie plays a teacher who takes the islands' children on a journey through a novel by Charles Dickens - Great Expectations. Set in a time of great island conflict over an open pit copper mine and the various fighting factions of the government and the island rebels. Beautifully done...well done!