Beyond Rangoon

I first saw Beyond Rangoon years ago, and my interest in South East Asia has kept growing ever since.

Laura's husband and son have just been murdered. Seeing her sink into depression, her sister takes her on a tour of Burma hoping the change will somehow get her back on track. Due to a thoughtless mistake Laura finds herself trapped in the country on her own, finding herself face to face with the exactions of the military dictatorship. She meets an old professor who becomes her only way out of the country. During their escape through the Burmese jungle, tracked by the military, Laura finds herself forced to fight her way back into life. She gradually lets go of her own pain to focus on the country's wounds. And I just love the ending, it's a wise one.

I'd like to answer some other reviewers' comments: Laura is MEANT to be in that comatose don't-give-a-damn state. Arquette's interpretation is spot on. That's the sort of state I'd be in if I had seen the people I cherish the most lying in a pool of blood on my living room floor. This is what makes her wander out of the safety of the US Embassy even though as an intelligent woman she's bound to sense the danger of doing this. What's happened to her has made her almost suicidal, "I was stone myself".

The film is well paced, the acting is good, and the scenery is beautiful. Intense and food for thought, this film will be haunting you for days. That's an 8/10.

So what is Columbia waiting for to release it on DVD ??

In the 90's, the American doctor Laura Bowman (Patricia Arquette) travels to Burma (presently Myanmar) with her sister and also doctor Andy Bowman (Frances McDormand) to recover from the loss of her beloved husband and son that were murdered in a theft at home. Laura sees a political pro-democracy manifestation to support the leader Aung San Suu Kyi and she decides to participate; however she loses her passport and she is not allowed to leave Rangoon.

While waiting to have another flight, Laura meets the unofficial tourist guide U Aung Ko, who is also a leader of an underground movement, and she decides to visit the countryside of Burma. However, the military dictatorship represses the movement and Laura, U Aung Ko and several civilians try to escape to Thailand in a dangerous journey.

"Beyond Rangoon" is an underrated film that has not aged, with top-notch performance of the gorgeous Patricia Arquette, I saw this film twice on VHS in the 90's and it is amazing that the military dictatorship still does exist in this country.

In accordance with the statement of John Boorman in the Extras of the DVD, the dramatic scene when the commander orders to shoot the politician Aung San Suu Kyi did really happen. Aung San Suu Kyi won the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize and shamefully was only released from house arrest on 13 November 2010. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Muito Além de Rangum" ("Far Beyond Rangoon")

Patricia Arquette plays American doctor Laura Bowman, who takes a holiday to Burma in an attempt to heal her spirit after the murders of her husband and young son. She is left behind in Rangoon during a military crackdown and leaves the city with an aging man who works as a "tour guide." But he is no simple tour guide; he is a professor who introduces her to the life outside of the tourist traps ... the two of them get caught up in the political upheaval and Laura sees with her own eyes how the government betrays and oppresses its own people.

This movie is one of my favorites because of its themes. First, it's informational (describing some of the injustices that are occurring in Burma). Secondly, it's about a woman's struggle to find meaning in life after an incredible loss. Thirdly, it's about compassion and sacrifice, and people coming together - without even knowing each other - to endure pain and fear.

Just about every beautiful scene in this movie is important; nothing is wasted here. It's an earnest and moving film. There is also a very emotional score composed by Hans Zimmer which complements scenes nicely.

A definite recommend, especially to people concerned with human rights ... and people who want to know, "What purpose can I serve?"

When an American tourist comes to Burma with her sister to try and move on from the murder of her husband and son. However a midnight walk brings her into the middle of a student demonstration where she loses her passport. Left behind by her tour group she begins tour of discovery through the troubled country led by U Aung Ko. She discovers a world of atrocities that have not been exposed to the media.

There's no denying that there is a great story here – it is a powerful tale of injustice, military rule and massacres that happened away from the public eye. However this film does not really tell that story. Instead it focuses on an American doctor on holiday in Burma who allows us to see all these things. However it comes across like it's about her rather than the country. She is seen as the most important character and we have a subplot about her overcoming the loss of her family in the US. It takes away from the central story and makes this feel like a soap.

Of course it needn't have been like that. It's only a terrible, flat, lifeless performance from Arquette that does this. She is so flat that it's hard to care about her and it comes across even more like a soap. She gives us shock, self-righteous indignation etc all under a monotone voice over than made me want to sleep. She manages to come across as more important than everyone else in the country and it's as she only sees events in terms of how they affect her. Outside of Arquette the support cast are good – U Aung Ko in particular, but McDormand and Grey are OK.

The film continues with Hans Zimmer's standard `Far East' score (compare this to Black Rain to see what I mean) and Arquette discovering herself and spuing philosophy everywhere. However at the end the film acts as a metaphor for why the US didn't know about events in Burma – because no one cares about massive deaths unless a Westerner is involved. We see in on the news everyday – hundreds killed in a third world country is relegated to the end of the news, after a story about what Brittany was wearing that day! But if one American was killed then it would be the lead story with politicians running from all corners to comment on it.

The film manages to take a terrible, emotive story and make it into a beautifully shot drama about one American woman who only sees things in terms of how they affect her. Boorman has a good try but really needed a much better actress to lift the script.

Never had I seen such a powerful true story movie. I discovered a city, a country, a lost revolution and even a Nobel prize winner thanks to this masterpiece of cinema.

If you haven't seen this movie, you can't say you've seen anything .

A great lesson of courage, humility and life.

I haven't seen anything as good since.

T.E. Saturday, January 9th, 1999