A Viagem

*** out of ****

Brokedown Palace has an intriguing premise: two best friends (Kate Beckinsale and Claire Danes) fresh from high school are on their summer vacation in Thailand, but are arrested for possession of narcotics, found guilty and sentenced to 33 years in a women's prison. Admittedly, I'm aware of several films with similar stories (Midnight Express, Return to Paradise, and Red Corner), and I must also admit I've only see one of those three aforementioned films, which might be why much of it felt fresh and engrossing to me. Either that, or it's just a story that's told damn well.

Bill Pullman also stars in the picture as an American lawyer named Hank Greene, who feels for the girls' plight and fights to prove their innocence. But the real focus is on Beckinsale and Danes, whose wonderful performances are the anchor to the film's drama and moral quandaries. Beckinsale's Darlene is the more reserved and quieter of the two, the kind of person who sort of follows her friend without question, and certainly not the type to take unwarranted risks (unless her friend persuades her to). She's almost a direct opposite of Danes' Alice, whose outgoing and semi-rebellious behavior is the indirect link to their current troubles.

I hesitate to give much more of the movie away, suffice to say that their friendship is what's ultimately put to the test, and watching the twists and turns (almost all of which are perfectly believable) in the story is utterly captivating. The film slinks to melodrama in its climactic moments, but still rings true thanks to the tour-de-force turns from Beckinsale and Danes.

It's an open-ended question as to whether or not either of the girls committed the crime of smuggling narcotics, and such ambiguity might upset some, but I liked not knowing for certain, and it's not as if it makes the final scenes any less believable. In fact, the ambiguity only makes it all the more compelling. Yes, the plot has its share of head-scratching moments (what purpose does that Thai girl who despises Darlene and Alice really serve?) and lacks subtlety on occasion, but it's a well-crafted film that boasts great performances, and has the guts not to cop out in the end.

I saw this film at a store in the cheap section. I actually vividly remembered seeing the commercials and trailer for it years ago. I thought "What the hey' and bought it, basically because the plot sounded interesting and Claire Danes has always been someone of talent in my eyes (this was also before I became a huge Kate Beckinsale fan).

So it's about two girls who sneak off to a vacation in Bangkok, get busted for narcotics (which they are innocent of) and then are sent to a Thailand prison. The film follows what will happen to them and at times questions their innocence.

Both Claire Danes and Kate Beckinsale give great performances, and the plot of this film wraps itself up unconventionally, and raises some nice moral discussion questions.

I think this is a solid good film, but there could have been some improvements. It could have been longer...it would've helped to solidify these characters and more insight into the politics of Thailand's justice system would've helped.

Nevertheless, other than that, it's a good film with some great performances.

P.S. For all you pop-culture junkies be on the lookout for a two-minute role by Paul Walker. I didn't even notice him the first time I saw the film.

High on the list of sadly neglected and wholly underappreciated films of the past several years stands 1998's "Return to Paradise," a tale of three American vacationers who inadvertantly run afoul of the laws of Malaysia, two of whom must decide whether or not to sacrifice themselves and return to the brutal third world country to serve their prison sentence so that the third who has been caught can avoid execution. What is most remarkable about this film is that it manages not only to set up a fascinating moral dilemma for both the characters and the audience but, most amazingly, to stay true and honest to it throughout the course of the entire film.

"Brokedown Palace," whose plot echoes "Return to Paradise," falls several notches below the earlier film mostly because it saves its moral dilemma until the very end of the story. The resolution is a powerful one when it comes, but the delay robs the film as a whole of some of its interest. In this film, Claire Danes and Kate Beckinsdale play recent high school graduates who opt to visit Thailand instead of Hawaii and run into a sleazy young con man who plants heroin on them - an act for which, when it is discovered by the authorities, the girls are falsely imprisoned. The bulk of the film concerns itself with the attempts by an American lawyer (Bill Pullman) to clear their names and secure their freedom.

Much of the film plays like a rehash of "Midnight Express," as the girls are badgered and threatened through their interrogations and forced to endure the rigors of a Third World prison - although, strangely enough, the horrors seem oddly downplayed at times. These are the weakest sections of the film for the visualization of the experience seems almost too glamorized at times, as if the commercial-minded filmmakers didn't dare risk alienating these actresses' many fans by offending their sensibilities. Still, the situation is a ripe one for intense audience identification since who cannot empathize with a couple of fun loving adolescents caught in a nightmarish web not of their own making? Actually, the sharpest aspect of the film is the underlying theme of the scary part seemingly insignificant actions and decisions can play in determining the course of one's entire life. Constantly, the girls are forced to wonder "what if we had gone to Hawaii...what if we had not met the drug smuggler...what if we had not snuck into the hotel to order drinks on a stranger's room bill, etc." The movie also achieves some depth in its final moments as Alice (Danes) grapples with a major moral decision and discovers the redemption for a life built on a pattern of seemingly insignificant deceit and lies. She realizes that a person's character is made up of ALL the actions she performs in a lifetime, regardless of how trivial or benign they may seem at the time. In addition, she learns the often horrifying price true friendship sometimes demands - and her final actions betoken a personal maturation that helps lift her character far above the rung of conventional movie heroines.

"Brokedown Palace" may occasionally seem tedious in its details, but the thematic depth and moral underpinnings that lie within it make it a film worth watching.

Alice(Claire Danes) and Darlene(Kate Beckinsale) have been best friends since forever and after they graduate they decide to take a trip to Thailand. Due to a incident, they meet a young attractive mysterious stranger who invites them to go with him Hong Kong for the weekend. But at the airport, Alice and Darlene are mistaken for drug smuggling heroine and they are sent to prison. Now it's time for ultimate survival and true friendship. This was a pretty good movie, i've seen it a couple of times and after a while you notice that they are a few holes in the plot but the movie still keeps you entertained. Claire Danes did a great job as usual, she is a great actress. I would give Brokedown Palace 8/10

The film concerns about a pair young girls(Claire Danes, Kate Beckinsale) take a vice-filled vacation to Thailand . Then they're deceived by an Australian drug dealer. Suddenly, they're busted in the Thai airport attempting to smuggle hard drug in their luggage . Then, they're are sentenced to a nightmare and cruel prison as an example to other potential smugglers. The young girls are convicted long time in a squalid third world prison. They're only helped by an expatriate advocate(Bill Pullman) in law and his supporter(Jacqueline Kim). Later enduring tremendous physical and mental , the girls seek their chance at escape.

This powerful and gripping movie is a jail-drama based indirectly on true events. The picture relies heavily on the enjoyable relationship between Beckinsale and Danes, more than on legal problems and brutal conditions from prison. Despite contributing a final twist to the extremely suspenseful climax , Claire Danes 's role feels too contrived and is the greatest gap in the movie. The story follows the wake of ¨Midnight express(Alan Parker)¨ and and ¨Return of paradise(Joseph Ruben)¨. The film is shot in Phillipines , as the government of Thailand was none too pleased by the screenplay. The motion picture is well directed by Jonathan Kaplan, he's a veteran director with hits: ¨Accused,Love field¨ and flops : ¨Unlawful entry, Bad girls¨and today working for television: ¨Law and order, Without a trace, Crossing Jordan, ER¨, among others. Rating: Good and well worth seeing.